Into Dawn
by B and M
Summary: A series that starts with the interactions between Rick, Michonne, and Morgan immediately after the events of "Conquered" (episode 5x16) and the influence they have on their lives in Alexandria.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: This is the first of a three (?) part piece that picks up immediately after the events of the season finale. It will feature interactions between Rick, Michonne, and Morgan that occur that night and into the next morning. I pictured it as a bottle episode introducing who Morgan is now and how it may start to affect Rick and Michonne. The first chapter is laying some ground work, so it may feel like a rehash-sorry for that. Also, fair warning, this is definitely a friendship and character piece, although Rick and Michonne's version of friendship is special to say the least and will be represented as such. :)**

 **Chapter 1, Night 1**

Rick carefully inserted his key in the lock of the front door trying to make as little noise as possible. He turned the handle and cracked the door ajar to quickly survey his living room before entering, unsure of who may be there and what to expect. He was surprised to see Michonne by herself standing in front of the fireplace. She slowly turned upon hearing the door open and looked at him, her expression neutral. He looked to the blank space above the mantle, then to the area just above her shoulder where the handle of her katana rested, and back to her face. He turned behind him to motion someone in, then opened the door fully and started walking into his house followed by the community's newest recruit.

"Carl and Judith are OK?" he asked as they walked into the living room toward her.

She nodded yes as she took them both in. Rick was mostly cleaned up since the last time she saw him, stripped down to his white undershirt with his bloodied jacket and button down shirt in hand. The majority of the blood on his face was wiped off, but streaks remained near his hairline and on his hands. It was a sight she had seen and experienced herself time and time again, but here in their nearly pristine home, after the events of the past few days, it was as unsettling as it was the first time she had seen it.

"How did he..." Rick trailed off motioning to the katana strapped to her back.

"He must have snuck in when nobody was in the house. Carl said he noticed it missing from the wall earlier this evening, but figured I had taken it with me," she said shaking her head with a mixture of relief and guilt.

Rick held her gaze for a moment, clenching his teeth in frustration. He let his mind briefly wander into darker thoughts of what could have happened if Pete had broken in while Carl and Judith were home. He had stolen the guns to protect his family and defend their new home, but he had lost his way and either directly or indirectly potentially put them in harm's way. Because of his actions, he had distracted himself and Michonne which left the children vulnerable. He'd warned Carl before to never let his guard down, that it only takes one moment for something to happen; and here he was almost living that nightmare.

Sensing his guilt, she softly spoke, "Rick, they're safe now."

He nodded and opened his stance toward his companion who had been at his side observing their exchange.

"Morgan, this is Michonne. I'm not sure if you remember, but you've met before."

He smiled and extended his hand to shake hers, "I do, but I wasn't really myself back then. I'm sorry."

"It's OK. I understand, I think we all do at this point," she said reassuringly as she withdrew her hand from his.

"Morgan's gonna stay with us tonight until we can get him settled in his own place tomorrow," Rick said to Michonne.

"Of course. Can I get you anything? Something to eat or drink?"

"Maybe some tea and a small snack, but only if it's no trouble. I haven't eaten since this morning."

"It's no trouble at all," she said as they walked toward the dining area. The two men seated themselves at the table, Rick at the head facing the kitchen and Morgan to his left. Michonne removed the katana and its holder from her back then leaned it against the table before proceeding into the kitchen where she put the tea kettle on the stove and started gathering items from the pantry.

She listened in on their conversation as they chatted quietly about Alexandria, Rick answering Morgan's questions about the community and how they came to find it. She looked up periodically at the two men and couldn't help but notice the disparity between their body language. Morgan sat with his back against the chair and his hands clasped together resting in front of him on the table. He smiled here and there and spoke in a quiet, measured tone. He never leaned in or moved his moved his hands, he just sat upright and still. Rick, on the other hand, was barely concealing the anxiety and tension that he was obviously feeling. When he spoke, his eyes darted anywhere but Morgan's direction; they instead went to the ceiling, straight ahead, or to her. He repeatedly cycled through cracking his knuckles one by one even though he had long since taken care of them, then eventually abandoned that tic for fiddling with his ring.

She came to the table with a small tray in one hand that carried 3 mugs, a box of assorted tea bags, a bottle of honey, and a bowl of cashews. She set the tray on the table, then tapped Rick's hand with her other hand which help a damp paper towel. He tentatively took it from her and looked up at her questioningly. She used her index finger to make a circular motion around her face and was met with a look of recognition as he then started dabbing his dirty face. She left and returned with a trivet and the kettle of boiling water which she placed in the center of the table. She finally joined the two men at the table and sat to Rick's right. Given the way she felt both eyes fall on her, she assumed she was a welcome addition to the stilted conversation they were carrying on.

"Morgan, how did you meet up with Daryl and Aaron?" she asked as she reached for the box of teas and started flipping through them to find one, her eyes going back and forth to Morgan as he answered her.

"I came across a large gated warehouse and saw a herd of walkers swarming around something. I went in to check it out because I was afraid someone was in trouble and I found them trapped in a car in the middle of the walkers."

"How many walkers were there?" she asked still dividing her attention between him and the tea.

She stopped on a chamomile tea bag and slid it over to Rick, then plucked out a decaf chai for herself. She quickly glanced to her side and saw Rick studying the bag in his hand. The description of the tea, "a calming and soothing blend of chamomile and herbs," made him smile to himself. Not the most subtle message on her part, but it was received loud and clear, though he doubted it would even touch him given the events of the past 24 hours.

"Thirty or so around the car? But there must have been hundreds overall. It looked like a trap set up by the men I had encountered earlier in the day," he said in the same even tone he'd been speaking in all night.

Michonne's eyes grew wide with surprise at the statement and she looked at Rick to see if he had heard this yet to which he nodded. "What men?"

"I was having my breakfast in the woods this morning when I was confronted by two men. Called themselves wolves. Said they wanted to kill me and take my things."

"How do you know that was their doing?" she asked her eyes still darting back and forth between Rick and Morgan. Rick was quietly listening to them, so she assumed he had already discussed this with Morgan, Daryl, and Aaron before coming home.

"One of them told me that they like to run through camps and set traps. They also had "W's" carved in their foreheads and so did the walkers at that warehouse," Morgan said.

Michonne was processing what he was telling her when Rick finally spoke up, looking directly at her, "I found a walker with the same marking on its forehead just outside the walls."

"When?" she asked.

"The morning after the party."

"Why didn't you say anything about it?"

He glanced at Morgan, then back at her. He thought he had come clean to her about everything that had been going on, but his heart sank as he realized he was about to disclose one more breach of trust. "I found it...when I was out with Daryl and Carol." He watched her as she closed her eyes and took a deep breath in. He leaned closer to her and said in a hushed voice, "I didn't think it meant anything. I would have told you if I did." He stayed leaned toward her until she opened her eyes, then finally sat back in his chair.

She looked straight ahead at Morgan and calmly asked, "How far out was this trap?"

"About 50 miles south of here."

She nodded her head and took a moment before she turned her attention to Rick and spoke, "We've seen this before. You don't remember?" He squinted his eyes as if he was scanning his memory, then shook his head no.

"The walkers in the car we crashed into outside of Noah's community had the markings on their heads. Morgan said they run through communities. They must have done that to Noah's community." He leaned forward in his chair and turned his attention to Morgan.

"How many of them are there?" he asked.

"I have no idea. I met two men. We didn't see any more at the warehouse," Morgan responded.

"There's no way only two men did that, there have to be more out there. Are you all sure you weren't followed?" Rick asked.

"As far as we know, no one did. But..." he trailed off looking between Rick and Michonne. "The two that I met are still alive."

The two of them exchanged an incredulous look. "You said they tried to kill you," Michonne said emphatically.

"Yes, they did. And I defended myself, but it's not my place to decide who lives or dies," he finished as he looked pointedly at Rick.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Thanks so much for the positive feedback! I wasn't expecting much at all because I wasn't sure how this would be received, but I'm happy there are folks out there who are enjoying it. We're picking up right where we left off last time…**

 **Chapter 2, Night 1**

Rick silently nodded his head at Morgan. He had no intention of getting involved in this conversation at this hour, so he placed both hands at the edge of the tale and backed his chair away then stood up to collect the empty mugs and kettle.

"It's been a long day...I'm gonna call it a night," he said aloud to the room looking at no one in particular. "I'll bring down some blankets for you," he called back to Morgan over his shoulder as he headed into the kitchen to place the dirty dishes in the sink.

Michonne stood up from the table and looked at down at Morgan with a small apologetic smile. She didn't agree with what he'd said to Rick, but he was a friend and a guest in their home, and the growing tension was obvious and uncomfortable. As Rick exited the kitchen and made his way to the stairs, she followed behind him brushing his arm to catch his attention once she caught up.

"I'll get him settled in," she said in a hushed voice.

"All right," he said not turning back as he proceeded up the stairs with her following closely behind. Once they reached the landing, he mumbled a good night and immediately entered the room he was sharing with Carl and Judith, closing the door behind him. Michonne stood staring at the closed door considering whether to try talking to him, but once she heard the shower start, she turned away deciding to leave it until morning.

After gathering blankets and a spare pillow from the hall closet, she headed back downstairs to find Morgan standing in front of the spot she had left her katana leaning against the table. She dropped the pile of linens on the couch and walked in his direction, her movement catching his eye and causing him to turn toward her.

"It's beautiful," he said motioning to her sword.

"It's..." she found herself almost telling him how she could only see the vile acts it had committed when she looked at it anymore, especially after tonight, but stopped herself. "Thank you."

He started to walk over to the couch and chuckled to himself. "This place, it's like finding an oasis in the middle of the desert. I never thought I'd see anything like this again. It doesn't seem real."

"Yeah...I felt like that, too, when we got here. We were desperate to find somewhere to set up camp, especially for the kids. To find this?" she said holding her hands out motioning to the well-decorated, comfortable home. There were no words to describe what she felt, so she just shook her head as she wandered into the living room after him.

"How long have you been with Rick?"

"I've been with the group for almost a year, I'd guess."

"That's a long time these days," he said as he sat down on the couch.

"It is. We fought hard for it," she said softly still standing in the center of the room. As big a feat as it was, it was impossible to think of without also being reminded of the loss of Andrea, Hershel, Bob, Beth, Tyreese, and Noah along the way.

"It shows...how is Rick doing?"

Michonne paused, the question nearly knocking the wind out of her. Rick was not OK, and no one was more concerned than her, but admitting that to someone else felt like a betrayal to him. "He's been through a lot..."

"He had been through a lot the last time I saw him, but he wasn't like this," Morgan countered, his tone still even and calm.

"He's going to be fine," she said deliberately.

"Michonne, I consider Rick a friend, and I owe my life to him as much as he says he does to me. I'm not trying to judge him, but I want him to know that there's another way to live."

Michonne was struck by how similar his words were to those she had said to Rick upstairs just that afternoon. The only thing more striking was how in just a few hours, she'd started to doubt that the other way she had suggested wasn't as far off from Rick's current way as she hoped it could be.

"Would you have done that tonight? Would you have killed that man?" She stared at him unable to answer his question, partly in shock that he felt familiar enough to ask that and partly because she wasn't quite sure what she would have done. He took her silence as an answer and smiled. "You wouldn't have."

She exhaled and closed her eyes tightly, then reopened them before taking a seat in the armchair opposite the couch. "How long have you been on your own?"

"Save for a few months at the beginning with my son, the whole time."

"I was alone out there, too. Not as long as you, but it was several months." He leaned forward with interest wanting to learn more about this kindred spirit. "I know your story from Rick, so I know what you've lost, and seeing who you are now compared to when we first met is incredible. You came out of it by yourself which is something I couldn't do...or maybe I just didn't want to."

"What do you mean by that?" he asked gently.

"When you're out there on your own, your code is your code. There's no one there to challenge you. You don't have to think and you don't have to feel if you don't want to. Your decisions affect you and you alone. When you've lost like we have, it's a safe way of life." He sat quietly contemplating what she was saying. "Loss isn't the only thing that can take its toll on you, though. Surviving can too. Rick's been fighting to keep himself, his children, and his group safe since the start. Day in and day out, making the tough calls, putting himself on the line, having to do unthinkable things to keep living….it's a much braver way to live than what I was doing for so long."

"All life is precious, Michonne," Morgan said not accepting this as an explanation for Rick's actions earlier.

"No, it's not," she shot back.

"It is. You can't preemptively kill people out of fear of what they may do to you. Living in fear is worse than any enemy."

"Those men you left behind today...the destroyed our friend's community. One just like this full of families, pillaged and burned to the ground. Bodies dismembered and just scattered across the ground...they're still out there looking for another community to attack, and it could be us."

"Maybe when they came to, they realized the gift that I gave them. A chance to start over and change who they are. A second chance at life like we got..."

"Do you really believe that? Honestly? It's not the same!"

"I have to," he said straightening his posture. His body language said to her that he was disengaging from the argument.

"Everyone and everything that I care about in this world is upstairs and next door, and they're at risk because you gave two assholes a second chance today. I'm sorry, but that's not how the world works anymore," she stood up abruptly and walked over to the table to retrieve her katana. When she gripped it, she noticed that her hand was trembling in anger. She turned to head over to the stairs when Morgan stepped in front of her and held up his hands to signal her to stop. She took a deep breath and averted her eyes from him.

"I didn't mean to upset you," he said with no acknowledgement from Michonne.

"You lost a child, too?" he asked gently. She was already upset and his supposition felt invasive and only angered her more. She looked up and stared at him with her chin jutted out in defiance and side stepped around him to continue to the stairs.

"I'm sorry for your loss, Michonne," he said as she brushed past him.

She kept her head down to avoid his gaze until she made it to the bottom of the stairs where she stopped and took in a deep breath before raising her head. Upon looking up, she saw Rick standing still at the top of the stairs, his eyes locked on hers. She slowly made her way up the stairs never breaking eye contact until she reached the top. He took a step backwards to give her space to stand in front of him.

"What are you doing?" she whispered aware of their proximity to the kids who were hopefully still sound asleep.

He looked down at the pair of sweatpants and t-shirt in his hand, "I was going to bring these down for Morgan."

"How long were you up here?"

He just tilted his head with a remorseful look on his face and she knew that the answer was _long enough_.

"You weren't supposed to hear that. Not like that," she said looking down at their feet which were practically toe to toe.

"Hey," he said grazing her hand with his. "I'll be right back up." He held her gaze until she finally looked up and nodded at him.


	3. Chapter 3

**I went a little longer between updates than I had hoped to, but life got in the way and the story kept wanting to take a different path from what I had originally planned...so I stopped fighting it and went with it. This was supposed to be the final installment, but it just didn't feel like it was over yet. It's going to veer away from what I thought could realistically happen to straight up wishful thinking, but that's more fun anyway. Thank you for reading, as always! I really appreciate the reviews-knowing people are out there enjoying the work makes it worth it! cakebythepound, you had me blushing, thank you so much for your kind words!**

 **Chapter 3, Night 1  
**  
Her bedroom door was ajar, but the lights were off when he finally made his way back upstairs after taking a few minutes to speak with Morgan. He stepped into small opening and peaked his head in to see Michonne lying under the blanket on the far side of her bed with her back to the door.

"Michonne?" he whispered.

"I'm awake," she called out as she rolled onto her other side to face him.

He stepped in, then quietly closed the door behind him and walked toward the center of her room. He looked down at the katana that was occupying the empty space beside her in bed, and gently pushed it closer to her to make room for himself. He took a seat on the edge and faced her, one leg bent and resting on the bed and the other still planted on the floor. He looked at her with her hands clasped under her head resting on the pillow, and sighed.

"You OK?"

"I just got into an argument with the second coming of buddha, so I'm gonna have to say no..." she said wryly.

He bit his lower lip, holding back a smile. Laughing felt off limits tonight, especially at the expense of his friend downstairs regardless of where they stood now.

"You don't have to fight my battles for me. Especially if you don't agree with what I did tonight," he said gently.

"You weren't wrong, Rick."

"But I wasn't right?"

She sighed and lifted herself to a seated position, letting her back rest against the headboard. "I don't know...maybe it could have been handled differently, but it's done. And it was done under Deanna's order. If you're at peace with it, then I wouldn't look back...anyway, I don't even think that's what that was all about," she said as she gestured to the area downstairs.

"Then what was it about?"

"You don't need your gun? I don't need my sword?" she said as she looked away from him and out the window closest to her, frustration with herself growing with each word she said. "Thinking we could change just like that when we walked through those gates...that could have gotten you hurt tonight, maybe even the kids..."

"Yeah, I needed to hear that, though. I was going too far the other way."

She turned her head away from the window to look at him again. He sat looking back at her, eyes clear and soft, body still and relaxed. She felt her lower lip start to tremble slightly, so she took a deep breath and pressed her lips together trying to stop it. Relief. She recognized the feeling washing over her as she sat there looking at Rick. He was coming back after days of distance and disconnect. It had started that afternoon, but their too brief conversation and ensuing events made the connection feel tenuous until now. Everything about the past few days felt so wrong, and she still didn't completely understand it.

"Why did we fall apart now?" she wondered aloud, unsure for a moment whether she was just thinking it or actually said it until she saw Rick react with a wounded look.

"I thought we already established that I went crazy and fucked up. It's on me," he said trying to make light of what happened.

"I'm serious. Why now? We've had every reason to before and now that we finally have something to work with, we broke down. We've always been...we're better than that. It can't happen again."

Her words alone made him feel as if he was being scolded, but the pain on her face and urgency in her voice led him to believe that that wasn't her intention.

"Again," he repeated gently as he stood up and re-positioned himself so that he was sitting next to her against the headboard, his legs stretched out on front of him. She watched him settle in and finally nodded when he turned his head to look at her.

"I never meant to keep it from you. I just didn't know you well enough at the beginning, and then once I did, there was never the time." She had her head turned toward him, but her eyes were looking at a spot just past him as she started seeing scenes from her past play out in her mind.

"I'm here now, if you're ready."

She took a deep breath and began to feel her eyes well up. She had lived with this pain every day for the past two years, and it was a part of her now. It had gone from sharp and all consuming to this constant ache that she could finally bear and sometimes even ignore for a few moments at a time.

"My boyfriend and I had a son...his name was Andre and he was three when this all happened. We made it out of Atlanta with one of our friends right at the start and ended up in a camp where things were good for a while. We had supplies, we were safe, we were making it...after a couple of weeks, things started to deteriorate, though. Morale was low, supplies were running out, there was a series of breaches and we started to lose people. Mike got...scared, hopeless. I tried so hard to fix us. I thought that my will to live could carry all of us through until he got better. I was going on runs and looking out for them, but he wasn't getting better, he was... _distracted_ and I couldn't do it alone. I couldn't keep it all together and I lost them."

"How?" he choked out quietly.

"Walkers got to them. I was coming back from a run and I was too late," she said as she breathed in and wiped the tears from her eyes trying to regain her composure.

He moved his arm behind her head and around her shoulder, then pulled her against his chest. Her head tucked just under his chin and he brought his other arm around her letting it rest on the back of her head. Her story wasn't really a surprise to him. The Michonne he met early on was so clearly wounded and guarded. He knew she had to have experienced something horrific, but he never pressed. Not because he wasn't curious or didn't care, but because he knew from his own struggles that sometimes you needed to be able to push it out of your mind to carry on through another day. Hearing her story only confirmed the worst things he could have imagined, and his heart ached for her. What pierced through him, though, was the realization of how personal this fight was to her. She was close to him and his children, and he trusted her to no end with them. _They_ needed her. What he never considered was how much she needed them, as well.

Her tears finally slowed to a stop and she was lulled into a calm, quiet place, likely from relief mixed with exhaustion both physical and emotional. She thought back to another time when she would have felt self-conscious about that display of emotion in front of anyone, but this was part of opening up and living now.

"You are so strong," he finally whispered out loud, "but there was no way you could have changed that outcome by yourself. No one can do it alone. I definitely can't, and I'm so grateful to you that I don't have to." His chin remained resting on her head and he rubbed her arm lightly as he spoke. She took some comfort in his words, anyone could have said them, but from a man she knew had the utmost capability to survive, it actually meant something.

"We just have to find our balance again. We know what it takes," she said reassuring herself and him.

"We will."

She pulled herself out of his arms and leaned back against the headboard again giving him a sheepish smile. She had no regrets about sharing her past, but this level of openness and affection was brand new to them and she was hit with the slight awkwardness of the shift once she came face to face with him again. She could tell he felt it too because he wore his own sheepish grin for a moment before he averted his eyes and focused on the katana between them. She looked down at the sword, as well, which was a sobering reminder of the new threat beyond the walls.

"We've gotta do something about these wolves."

He chuckled quietly and looked at his watch. "At three-thirty in the morning."

"We can't afford to wait around for them, Rick." He sighed and looked away from her, a feeling of déjà vu accompanied this argument.

"You're right. And we will do something, but some asshole kept you awake all last night and most of tonight. You're no good to anyone if you're tired and off your game."

"Rick, I'm fine. If we start planning now, we can leave first thing-"

"Sleep. I'll keep watch, just like the old days." She just stared at him and wordlessly surrendered by sinking down to her pillow. He stared back at her waiting for her next challenge, but she stayed quiet and closed her eyes. He watched her until her breathing finally slowed and he knew she was sleeping before he carefully got out of bed. He dragged the bench at the end of her bed over to the window facing the gate. He knew Sasha was in the tower on watch, but he decided to keep watch over his home as well that night.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4, Day 2**

Rick held Judith on his hip with one arm while he skillfully prepared her bottle with his free hand. She was his alarm clock day in and day out, so they had this little morning routine of theirs down pat at this point. The only added challenge this morning was trying to keep the noise to a minimum so as not to wake the others upstairs and Morgan who was still sound asleep on the couch.

"Almost ready," he whispered to her as he started screwing the lid on the bottle. The baby began babbling happily and bouncing her legs up and down against his waist which he took as a sign of excitement for her morning snack. He couldn't help but smile as he looked down at Judith who was not focused on the bottle in his hand at all, but rather on Michonne who had just walked into the kitchen. His smile faded as soon as he saw her standing there, fully dressed in a purple tank, dark skinny jeans, and boots with her katana strapped to her back.

She scrunched her face when she saw the look her gave her and watched as he approached her, the baby growing more excited the closer they got. Michonne playfully pinched her chunky thigh and silently mouthed good morning to her with an exaggerated smile on her face. She looked back at up Rick who tilted his head toward the side door leading out to the porch.

Once outside, Rick looked down at his watch which read 6:00 AM. "Two and a half hours?" he asked as he sat down on the porch step, placing Judith on his lap.

"It's all I needed," she said with a smile as she sat down next to him. His response was just a muffled groan of disapproval.

"I want to check out the warehouse Morgan was talking about last night," she said clearly without hesitation.

"Michonne..."

"I know what you're thinking, but it's not the same. We know exactly where it is and we have a real chance of finding them before they can find us. I'll have Daryl and Aaron take me, so I'll have… _reinforcements_. This isn't some wild goose chase."

He rubbed his forehead in frustration. The sun was barely up, and she was already wearing him down. "We _should_ check it out. We'll talk to Deanna and set up a group to go out later today."

"Talk to Deanna? Rick, she can't handle this right now. It's on us, and I want to take care of it."

"We have others who can go...Abraham, Glenn..."

"But I _want_ to go," she said firmly.

"Why?" he asked breathlessly, feeling at the end of his rope. His brow was furrowed and his eyes searched her face as if looking for an answer themselves. She was confused as to why her desire to go on this mission would be a mystery to him if he knew her at all, and he knew her more than well enough by now. She wanted to protect her family and there was only one person she trusted more than herself to do it.

"Why don't you want me to go?" she asked calmly.

He clenched his eyes shut and tilted his head upward. The strained look on his face exaggerated the wrinkles on his forehead and around his eyes and was such a stark contrast to the baby with soft, chubby cheeks content in her father's lap with her bottle in mouth. He finally looked down at Michonne and simply said, "I don't want you to get hurt."

"I don't want anyone to get hurt. _That's_ why I want to go." It was important to her that he understood that this wasn't running away or an impulsive decision. She had thought it through, and felt it was the best way for them to do exactly what they said they would do last night: protect the children and themselves like had been doing all along. In a perfect world, neither of them would have to do this, but it was imperative now. There was only one thing he could say at this point that would stop her from going.

She placed her hand on his forearm and leaned in closer, looking him in the eye, before softly asking "Are you OK?"

"Of course."

"If you need me to stay, I will."

He looked at her hand on his arm, comforted by the touch and aware that she was offering him an out if he wanted it. "No...no, I'm OK," he said nodding for emphasis.

"OK," she said as she smiled at him and patted his arm before pulling her hand away. "This is how we do it. You here keeping them safe and me out there doing the same. It feels right." She sounded so assured and optimistic about this mission, and he wanted to feel it too, but it wasn't coming to him.

"I don't believe you actually slept last night," he said with a grin.

She rolled her eyes at him, then leaned over and placed her hand on the baby's tummy, rubbing it gently. "Judy, is your daddy trying to call me a liar?" she asked with a smile that the baby returned.

"I'm just looking out for you," he said solemnly. His serious response caught her off guard and made her look up from the baby.

"That's all I'm trying to do, too." He shook his head and mumbled _I know_ under his breath before reaching up to squeeze her shoulder.

"You have time for breakfast before you go?"

"I need to head over to Aaron's. I should probably let him know his plans for the day," she said with a self-conscious grin, "but I'll be back to grab my stuff and say good bye before I head off."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"She's really really old and she used to be a librarian so it's basically just English all day, every day. We're diagramming sentences now. It's pretty boring...and hard," Carl said in a bright voice that made it sound like he was just complaining about school because he felt like a teenage boy was expected to and not because he really minded it.

"Ahh, I remember doing that. Compound subjects and predicates and all that," Morgan reminisced with a smile on his face.

"Exactly! The more words in the sentence, the bigger the headache it is." Carl finished the last of his oatmeal just as his father came down stairs in his constable uniform.

"Carl, you're gonna be late for school if you don't hurry up," Rick said as he approached his son and Morgan at the dining table.

Carl pushed back from the table and cleared his dirty plates in response. On his way back from the kitchen, he grabbed his backpack and said his good byes to both men.

"He's going to school," Morgan said with a chuckle, shaking his head in disbelief, "it's just amazing when you think about it."

"Yep," Rick answered distractedly as slipped his boots on. Once finished, he stood up and grabbed his jacket off the coat hanger in the entry way the slipped it on. "I, uh, I gotta go on patrol. I talked to Maggie and it sounds like they should have a place ready for you this afternoon. You're welcome to stay here until then."

"You mind if I come on patrol with you?"

"It's really just walking around the neighborhood. Nothing exciting," Rick said sounding less than enthused.

"I'd love to see the place in the light of day."

"Sure. Let's go," Rick conceded.

The streets were always quiet, but this morning even more so. The community was likely still stunned from the events of the previous night. Those who were out, avoided Rick's gaze and he theirs. What little good will he may have built up by saving them from walkers and offering to teach them how to protect themselves was damaged by the murder of Pete. Rick and Morgan walked quietly for several minutes before Morgan spoke.

"Your boy, he favors you."

Rick's eyes continued scanning the streets as answered, "Nah, just the eyes if anything. He favors my...his mother...lanky, heart-shaped face, dark hair."

"Duane looked like his mother, too. All eyes and cheeks," he said with a smile on his face that permeated his voice. Rick just looked at him and nodded.

"You have so many blessings, Rick, yet you seem to be so unhappy," Morgan remarked. Rick felt his muscles tense and annoyance rise in him. He was reminded of a fanatical religious couple who lived down the street from Lori and him that turned any block party or run in at the grocery store into on opportunity to proselytize. He didn't care what anyone believed in, but he hated the feeling of having to politely hear someone out who thought they knew what was better for him and his family than he did. He could see where this conversation was going and he wanted no part of it. He just groaned and turned his face away from Morgan with no success.

"You have this beautiful home, your health, your children..."

"Morgan, I'm sorry, I don't mean to seem cold, but I don't want to hear this right now," Rick said, his frustration finally pouring out of him.

"I was you where you are, Rick. And you tried to get through to me, but I couldn't hear it. It took a long time, but eventually I did and here I am. I understand that you might not be able to hear me now, but you will," Morgan said completely unfazed.

"I can't be like you. It won't work for me. I can't stop fighting because I have to protect all of those _blessings_ you pointed out."

"I haven't stopped fighting, Rick. You can defend yourself and the ones you love without killing. You can let go of the fear and anger and live in peace," he urged his friend, his voice bordering on a whisper.

Rick just stood with his arms hanging at his side, realizing that a fight was useless. Neither of them was willing to budge, and the chasm was too wide to bridge. "I need to get back to work. You should check in with Maggie to see if your place is ready." He looked Morgan in the eye and nodded. He had nothing to apologize for, but the situation was unfortunate nonetheless. His old friend had traveled thousands of miles to reunite with him, but felt to Rick that they had nothing in common anymore except for their past.

 **A/N: This story...expect more characters as I drift even farther away from my original concept. At this point the title doesn't even make sense anymore, but what are you gonna do? :) Thanks for reading!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5, Day 2**

The morning sun shone through the breaks in the trees creating a strobe effect as they drove down the desolate highway. She stared out the window of the passenger seat of the car looking for anything at all, but seeing nothing. No walkers, no debris, no animals. Nothing except Daryl riding ahead of them on his motorcycle. On any other run, this would have been ideal, but she was anxious to find something that would given them the upper hand on this group. The clock on the dash, though, showed they'd only been on the road for 25 minutes, so she reminded herself to adjust her expectations and be patient.

"Rick's on board with this trip, right?" Aaron's voice asked from the driver's seat. He tried to sound casual, but she detected a hint of nervousness in his voice and frowned to herself.

"He is..." she replied still staring out the window.

"Good. He would kill me if-" his face froze and he stopped mid-sentence once he realized what he'd said. Michonne slowly turned her head from the window to face him, her lips slightly parted in surprise. "Oh, I...didn't mean it like that, it's just he's very territorial when it comes to y..." He trailed off again once he saw her cringe, and focused his attention back on the road, his hands tightly gripping the steering wheel at ten and two.

Michonne's reaction wasn't meant for Aaron at all. She couldn't blame him for being nervous when it came to dealing with Rick Grimes. He'd already witnessed and been the recipient of Rick's aggressive tendencies for lack of a better description after knowing them for just a few short weeks. It was, instead, just one of those moments that shined a spotlight on the harsh reality of their current lives. _I'll kill you_ , _it'd kill me_ , _he'd killed me if_...these weren't figures of speech anymore in their world. Particularly not the morning after Rick publically executed the town's surgeon in front of everyone.

"You want to listen to music?" he asked after a few minutes hoping to interrupt the silence that had become too uncomfortable for him to stand.

"Yeah, let's do that." She was all for a distraction at this point, as well.

"CD's are in the glove box. Just don't judge. They came with the car."

"No judgment," she assured him with a small grin that he returned. She browsed the selection: Neil Diamond, Luther Vandross, James Taylor, Madonna, Creed, Beck, Kelly Clarkson, Arcade Fire, Kanye West...she looked up at him trying to stifle a smile.

"What did I tell you?" he warned.

"I'm sorry, it's just so...all over the place," she said with the smile taking over.

"Eric and I have a theory that this tank of a car was probably grandma and grandpa's then got passed down as the first car for every grandchild in the family and the CD's are like an anthropological record of such," he said with his face lighting up the mention of Eric. "Maybe Carl can carry on the tradition," he added.

"Maybe," she said with a small smile. As ugly as the car was, the thought of Carl being able to have this very normal rite of passage for a teenage boy made her happy. She continued flipping through the CD case then gasped lightly when she came across a familiar CD and popped in in the player. "I wore this out when I was in college. I haven't listened to it in a long time," she said as she drew out the word long for emphasis. The first few bars of "Shiver" started to play and Aaron instantly recognized it.

"Yes...nice choice," he said in approval. She liked Aaron from the day they met. She was actually his biggest champion outside of Maggie, but she hadn't spent any time with him since the day they arrived in Alexandria. His job kept him away for days at a time, and then she had gotten wrapped up in her own world keeping them apart until today. He would have been her friend before, in fact he reminded her of one of her favorite neighbors in Atlanta. He was good people, plain and simple. Smart, warm, funny, and honest. Had he ended up on a different path, she had no doubt that he would have been a member of their group. The fact that he wasn't, though, was probably part of his appeal. He could survive outside the walls if need be, but he still retained the easy going nature of many of his friends in Alexandria. She admired the balance he struck between life outside and inside the walls, and hoped it would rub off on her.

"How is Eric doing?" she asked. She had seen him limping on his bad ankle at the town meeting the night before, but never had a chance to say hello.

"Oh, he's fine so don't let him tell you otherwise. Restless for sure, since he's been out of commission, but he should be back on his feet in a few more weeks. We're just grateful he was able to get his ankle taken care of before Pete-" he stopped himself short again and looked at Michonne with wide eyes. "I'm sorry. I..."

"It's OK," she said sighing in frustration since carrying on a normal conversation seemed to be a hard thing to do anymore. She worried that if Aaron was this uneasy around her, Rick was facing far worse at home.

"Do you regret taking us in?" she asked quietly.

"What?" he asked looking away from the road for a second. "No. No, of course not. Do I wish it had been less... _eventful_? Sure, but I don't think you'd argue with me on that."

"No, I wouldn't," she said wryly as she looked out the window. "Do you think we can fix it?" she asked earnestly as she turned to look at him.

"Isn't that what you're trying to do now?"

"I'm trying to protect us," she said shrugging her shoulders. _Us_ sounded inclusive enough, but the people who defined _us_ in her mind were a select few. It wasn't all of Alexandria or even their group. She knew deep down that _us_ was her, Rick, Carl, and Judith. Everyone would benefit from this if they succeeded, but they were the reason she went.

"They'll come around then. They have to," Aaron responded with an air of positivity. He looked over at Michonne for a reaction, but saw that she had returned to looking out the window. The ease that was present on her face just a few minutes ago gone and replaced with worry.

"For what's it's worth, I still think you're good people. You, especially. I know everyone sees Rick as the leader, but your group wouldn't be here if it wasn't for you."

She promptly shook her head, "It wasn't just me. He... _we_ all made it happen."

Aaron gave her a knowing smile, "Well, he's... _they're_ lucky to have you. You two kept that group going and kept each other going when you needed it. It was incredible to witness. And I'm not the only one who saw it. There's a reason Deanna made you co-constables. She believed you two together could make a difference in our community. So do I and so does, Eric. You've got our support."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Over the sound of clanking dishes and running water, Rick heard what he thought was a light tapping sound. He ignored it at first, but it persisted, so he turned off the water, placed the cup that he was washing back in the sink, and just listened. There was a brief moment of silence then he heard it start again. He dried his hands on a dish towel, then threw it on the counter and walked over to the front door. He peaked through the blinds to see a familiar face then glanced at his watch which read 11:13 PM. He unlocked the door and opened it.

"Jessie," he said softly in lieu of a greeting. Her eyes were red-rimmed likely from crying or exhaustion or both, and she wore the same clothes she had on the night before.

"Can I come in?" she asked. He looked over her shoulder and scanned the street which was completely empty, then stepped aside allowing her to enter. She walked into his living room and stood hugging herself tightly with her arms.

"How are you and the boys holding up?" he asked as he walked in her direction.

"We're..." she began to break down and stepped over to Rick burying her head in his chest. He faltered back from the force of her pressing against him then caught his balance. She grasped his white shirt in her hands, crying so forcefully that he could feel the tears soaking through to his chest. He wrapped his arms around her back to comfort her.

"It's OK. You're gonna be OK." He felt her shaking her head in disagreement against his chest. "You will. You have your boys and you're safe now. Your friends, neighbors, we'll all help you through it," he assured her thinking back to the support he got when he lost his own spouse.

She pulled her head away to look up at him. Her tears had slowed, but she still took in small breaths as she struggled to speak. "Where were you today?"

"I was around. Working."

"Why didn't you?" she started to ask. He raised his eyebrows questioning what she meant as she stopped and stared at his face. She didn't see the desperation and concern she had seen two days before when he pleaded with her to let him help her. "Why didn't you come see me? I thought-"

"Jessie, I didn't know how you'd feel. If I were you, I wouldn't have wanted to see me."

"Well I did. You're the only one I wanted to see. I'm scared and alone, Rick, and you said you would help me. Me, Rick, help me," she said as her hands clutched tighter on his shirt and the volume of her voice rose along with the emotion with each word she said.

He grabbed her wrists in his hands and whispered sternly, "Jessie, keep your voice down." She relaxed her grip and took a deep breath in, releasing it slowly. "I'm sorry that I didn't stop by to check on you. I'm sorry for what you're going through. We will help you, I promise," he released his grip on her hands once he was done speaking and she had calmed to the point that he could trust her not to cause a commotion that would wake the whole house.

"You keep saying we, Rick," she pointed out. He just nodded in response. He understood her confusion because he knew he had misled her when he told her he would only help and protect her. "So you don't want to help me?"

"I do, Jessie, but it can't just be me," he explained trying to let her down gently.

"I see," she said with no fight or bitterness in her voice. "So I have no one. I have no one at all," she whispered to herself as her hands began to tremble and tears started falling down her face again. She reached her hands up and placed them over his shoulders, gripping him tightly, trying to pull him into an embrace. "Can you just hold me? Please?"

"Jessie..." He whispered, his hands still at his side.

"Just tonight. Please. I can't be alone. I can't do it," she pleaded as she gripped his shoulders tighter.

"OK. OK," he relented letting his arms loosely encircle her.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

It was two in the morning by the time Michonne finally walked through the front door of their home. A lamp on the end table near the sofa was still on and illuminated Rick sitting upright on the couch, headed tilted downward, and eyes closed with one arm draped over the back of the sofa. A smile spread across her face as she thought that he may have fallen asleep in the living room after quieting down a fussy Judith or maybe just while waiting up for her. She hated to wake him, but thought it best to save him from the sore neck he was bound to have tomorrow if he slept in that position. As she quietly approached him from behind the couch, she stopped herself once she was close enough to see the full picture: Jessie sound asleep and curled up next to him with her head resting in his lap and his free hand draped across her waist. Michonne quickly backpedaled trying not to make any noise and made her way up the stairs only stopping briefly on the top step to look back to make sure she hadn't woken them.

 **A/N: I tried my hardest, but there is something about writing for Jessie that seems so soapy and melodramatic. I try to make her sympathetic and justified, but, it's not so easy to do! Next chapter will get back to Morgan, Michonne, and Rick dynamics. I just wanted to branch out a little bit this week and incorporate more of the events from the show into the story. Thank you for reading. :)**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Not a fan of sticking Jessie in that last chapter. Got it. I mean, they did just hug instead of having sex...that's not so bad right? No? Still not buying it? Well, hopefully this chapter is better received, but I make no promises.**

Simple1234-Thanks-glad you're along for the ride!

focusedOnProsperity-I'm sorry! I'm just trying to dig us out of the hole the show created. Hang in there.

songbird11-You make very good points. I'm gonna have to leave it at that. :) As for Jessie, denial maybe? Just seeing what she wants to see.

Guest-Rick's definitely in a bind that he needs to work himself out of ASAP.

Thank you for reading and reviewing! I love getting your reactions and opinions.

 **Chapter 6, Night 2**

A sudden cramp ran from his lower back down his leg and jolted him from his sleep, causing him to inhale sharply through clenched teeth. He tried moving his leg to change positions, but was met with resistance. Rick blinked his eyes a few times as the haze of sleep wore off and he became reacquainted with his surroundings. He looked down to see Jessie asleep in his lap, then up at the clock on the living room wall which read a quarter 'til four. His eyes then traveled to along the wall to the empty spot above the mantle where 2 lone nails nail resided. He felt his chest tighten as his mind immediately went to Michonne and the fact that he hadn't heard her come back yet. He lifted his upper body away from the couch, and turned back to the area behind him to look for any sign of her return, relaxing when he saw her boots by the bench in their entry way. He lowered himself back into the couch and brought both of his hands to his face as he let his head sink into the back of the couch and sighed in frustration. This was not where he wanted to be. Not mentally. Not physically. Not anyway at all.

"Jessie," he whispered while he placed he hand in her arm and gently shook it to rouse her. She didn't move.

"Jessie," he said with increasing volume. She finally murmured something unintelligible and looked up at him, propping herself up on one arm.

"What time is it?"

"Almost four. Come on, we need to get you home," he answered.

"But it's late," she protested sleepily as she began to close her eyes again and lower her head back into his lap.

He caught her arm and pulled her back up. "Come on. I'll walk you home."

XXXXX

Rick made his way directly up the stairs and found himself standing at Michonne's door. He raised his hand to knock, and then decided against it since she was probably sleeping. He knew she was home, but the compulsion to check on her and see it with his own eyes was too strong. He placed his hand on the door knob turning it as quietly and carefully as possible so as to not make noise. He cracked the door and peeked in to find her kneeling over a map spread out on the floor at the foot of her bed, a large pillar candle giving her light. The movement of the door caused her to snap her head up quickly.

"Rick," she huffed out, startled by his unexpected entrance. "Is everything OK?"

"Yeah, I'm sorry. I just didn't hear you come in."

"You were asleep," she said as she watched him enter the room, wearily eyeing the map as he did.

"Something you don't do much anymore apparently," he said as he knelt beside her. She returned her attention to the map and shrugged her shoulders. "How'd it go out there today?"

She sighed and sat back on her heels, "Not so good. Aaron and I staked out the warehouse, but we didn't see anyone come or go. The traps had been reset, so someone has been back there since the other night, but it doesn't seem to be their primary location."

"What about Daryl? He able to track 'em at all?"

"Not really. It's all paved roads in and out of that place."

"So what now?"

"We're going back out tomorrow...or today, actually. We know they check that place, so if we stay out there long enough, we're bound to catch them at some point," she said staying focused on the map and bracing herself for the fight she expected him to put up.

"We talking days? Weeks?"

"Days. Hopefully. I was thinking we could always set off the trap if it comes down to it. See if we can lure them back faster."

"Well, I'm in." She looked up slowly and met his gaze. She eyed him uneasily for a moment, causing him to let out a small nervous laugh. "What?"

"Nothing, it's just...between Aaron, Daryl, and me, I think we're good. No need to drag anyone else out there."

"Then Aaron can stay here. I'm sure he'd welcome the break. It'll be you, me, and Daryl just like the good old days," he answered, unfazed by her obvious reluctance.

"We're calling those good days now?" she couldn't help but ask with a smirk.

"You know what I mean."

"I'd love to have you along, but do you really think it's the best idea? Having both of us out there?" she asked.

He sighed and let his hands drop to his lap. "I feel like I'm not doing anything here, Michonne. I'm just walking around in circles, waiting for something to happen." She looked at him sympathetically because hated feeling helpless as well, but she couldn't understand why he didn't see the value in his role.

"Staying behind isn't useless, though. Somebody needs to be here to get things in order, prepare people, and defend this place if it comes down it." He didn't seem moved by her argument, so she went on. "You've got Carl and Judith and...other people you're responsible to," she offered tentatively. He stared at her with a blank expression until a moment of recognition flashed in his eyes and he dropped his head, shaking it.

"What you saw...it's not what it looked like," he explained lifting his eyes up to meet hers.

She winced at his statement, imploring him with her eyes not to lie to her. "Rick..." she warned shaking her head.

"It's not," he reiterated. "I made a mess out of that situation, and I'm just trying to make it better. That's it. It's not about her."

"That still sounds like a responsibility to me," she responded gently.

"Well, it won't be for much longer." He watched her silently nod her head in response. "So what time are we leaving?"

"Look, Rick, if you feel like you need to go, you can take my place."

"There's no need for that. Our group can manage things here and take care of the kids for a few days. This is what we used to do. We just did it before we got here."

"I thought we agreed yesterday morning that the best situation was to have one of us out there and one of us in here. It's the safest play if things go bad either way." Despite disagreeing with him, her voice remained calm.

"What time do we leave tomorrow?" he asked again.

"Rick, I really don't feel comfortable with this."

"And I hear you," he said in a hushed tone that she hoped would be followed by concession, but wasn't.

"But you don't agree..." she nodded in defeat, picked up her map and started folding shut."You're right. I don't know why I...Your kids, your call."

"Michonne, that's not what I meant," he said standing as she did. She handed him the folded map and walked over to her bedroom door holding it open for him.

"I need to get some sleep. The group leaves at 8."

XXXXX

Rick walked briskly through the empty streets of the safe zone hoping to clear his mind and settle his nerves after his conversation with Michonne. He was confounded as to how his desire to check in on her and support her on the mission devolved into an argument. He thought he had already reached rock bottom and finally started to climb his way out, but tonight made him question that. On his third lap around the streets, he noticed a light on in the living room of Morgan's house which he hadn't seen before. He stopped and watched for a moment, finally seeing his shadowy figure moving about behind the sheer curtains. He looked at his watch which read 5:15 AM, then took one step in the direction of Morgan's house, but stopped himself. He looked up and down the block which was still dark and quiet then back to Morgan's house. He exhaled slowly then made his way up to Morgan's door knocking quietly. He nervously twisted his wedding ring around his finger while he waited for him to answer the door.

"Rick," Morgan greeted him with a large smile.

"Morning, Morgan," Rick replied trying to muster a smile, but unable to with everything weighing on his mind. "If it's not a bad time, I was hoping we could talk."

"I always have time for an old friend," he said warmly as he stepped aside to let Rick in.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7, Day 3**

"This seems strangely familiar," Rick remarked as he walked through Morgan's door. The layout and finishes were identical to his, but the neutral paint color on the wall was just a touch more blue than grey and the hodgepodge furnishings differed, as well.

"It's a lot less crowded than your place," he said as he walked into the kitchen. "Just made a fresh pot of coffee. Want to join me for a cup on the porch?"

"Sure, that'd be good," Rick replied as he glanced around the living room. His house was likely just as quiet as Morgan's at the moment since everyone was still asleep, but there would have been no mistaking that it was a full house from the multiple pairs of shoes lining the wall in the foyer, Judith's toys scattered across the living room floor, and dirty cups from the previous night sitting in the sink.

Morgan handed Rick a mug of coffee and the two men made their way out to the pair of rocking chairs on his porch. As they settled in, Rick noticed that Morgan's place at the edge of the community offered him an unobstructed view of the east, where instead of looking across to another house, he could see the tops of trees peeking over the wall and, at this time of day, the sun rising just above it.

"You have about as nice a view as you can get in this place," Rick said gesturing to the area above the wall.

Morgan smiled as he swallowed the sip of coffee he had just taken. "It is and I plan to be right here to witness it every morning." They sat in silence for a moment watching the sunrise and sipping their coffee until Morgan finally interrupted the silence. "Here we are finally connecting at dawn. It's not how or when we planned for it to happen, but we got here nonetheless," he said shaking his head in awe before looking over at a pensive Rick. "So what's on your mind this morning?"

Rick let out a dry chuckle. "What's not might be the better question." Morgan nodded and waited patiently for him to answer his question.

"Morgan, I...," he sighed in frustration as he looked for the words he wanted to say, then started over. "We are different people with very different lives now, and I can't live your way. There are no limits to what I would do to protect my family, and that's never going to change. I make no apologies for that. There are other things, though, that I want to change. I need to."

"Rick, I understand." Rick was surprised to hear this as he felt he'd been on the defensive since Morgan's arrival. "If Jenny or Duane were still here, I'd have to think things would be different. But they aren't and I am, and there has to be a greater purpose for that."

"How did you do it? How did you heal?"

"It started with you. You were the first person I had talked to in...God, probably months. I had been holed up by myself and all I could do was relive my past and obsess over it, but you were my first tie to reality, to what was actually going on. Seeing you and your boy and hearing what you said about being able to come back, it introduced a new thought into my mind. For a while it was still drowned out by everything else, but eventually it grew louder and louder until I had no choice but to address it. So I packed a small bag of supplies and a gun and decided to see what was out there. I was alone for days, just wandering through the woods until I came across a woman named Mara. She was young, probably 18 or so, and when I found her she was leaned up against a tree burning up because she'd been bit a few hours before. See she'd been traveling with her father and brother trying to make it from Athens up to Dahlonega to find her grandparents, but they'd strayed off course early on. They'd gotten caught up in a herd right before I came across her, and her dad and brother had been torn to shreds, but she made it out with just a bite. All she had was her backpack and a walking stick. No gun, no knife. Those went with her dad and her brother. I offered her mine so she could end it for herself, but she refused. Said she wanted to experience every last bit of life that she could with a damn smile on her face." Morgan laughed shaking his head still in disbelief over her resolve. "Orphaned right at the end and it didn't break her. So I stayed with her and we talked about our families that night. She had no fear and was only grateful for the life she had experienced. There were times while we were talking that I thought this was all in my mind because it made no sense to me. I didn't understand how a person couldn't be angry about what happened. Early into the next morning the fever got higher and she finally succumbed. Before she did, though, she thanked me for being there for her and she wished me the peace I had given her." He stopped shaking his head, tears welling in his eyes as he recalled her final moments. " _She_ thanked _me._ I put her down right away and buried her body under the tree that night. Then I fell asleep for I don't know how long, but it was the most peaceful sleep I'd had in as long as I could remember. When I woke up, the sun was shining and it was quiet except for birds chirping. Her stick was laying beside me along with her backpack. I opened it up to see if there were any supplies and I found a dead flashlight, a few cans of food, and a book. It was about transforming suffering into peace through the teachings of Buddha. Being alone in the woods with nothing else to do, this Baptist boy decided to see what it was all about since what I had been doing wasn't working for me. I opened the cover and there was a bar code from a library and an inscription from her mother. I imagine her mother took it early on and gifted it to Mara to help her along the way in case she couldn't be there to do it herself. Her mother wanted her to have peace and she, in turn, passed that along to me. It was beautiful and it made me think of my Jenny and how she would have done something like that for Duane...and me. I was finally ready to accept it. You see, it wasn't just one thing that helped me. It was getting the message a few times along the way until finally I could hear it."

Rick continued to sit silently, mulling over Morgan's story. "I thought I had found my peace with Lori's death, but being here just brought back all of the hurt and guilt," Rick finally said after a long silence.

"Have you ever been able to talk to anyone about it?" Morgan asked.

"There was man named Hershel in my group and he helped me early on, but he...he didn't make it here."

"I'm sorry." Rick nodded in appreciation of his sympathy. "What about Michonne?"

The mention of her name caused him to stop and stare at Morgan for a moment. He felt a wall come up instantly. Talking about her to someone else felt off limits somehow since she occupied a place in his life that he'd never defined to himself much less verbalized to anyone else.

"I'm sure I don't have to tell you this, but she cares a great deal about you. I'd have a hard time believing that if she knew you were hurting, she wouldn't try to help you through it," Morgan added during Rick's hesitation.

Rick leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees and clasping his hands together around the nearly empty coffee mug he held. "I know that. And she was there for me too in the beginning...the other night she asked me why. Why we started to have trouble when we got here and I never actually told her why. It just doesn't feel fair to her...or Lori."

"Why, Rick?" Morgan pushed, knowing he was getting closer to the truth. Rick pushed off of his elbows and sat up straight in his chair again. He sighed and ran his hand over his face, as if he could wipe the tension away with his hand.

"Michonne saved my life. She brought Carl back when I feared that our relationship was beyond repair. And she pushed for this place; she wanted this for the good of my family and our group. She's my closest friend, she lives in my house, she has taken to my kids as if they're her own. After everything we've been through together to get here, I didn't want to have to tell her that I couldn't enjoy it was because all I could think of was my wife. And then if I did tell her, I felt like it would be a betrayal to Lori in a way, trying to put her memory behind me with the woman who essentially took her place. So I tried to handle it on my own, and...I failed. I haven't been myself."

"What do you think Lori wanted for the kids?"

"To be safe and happy."

"And for you?"

"The same, I suppose," Rick said as he shrugged.

"She would have. No doubt," Morgan assured him.

"You know, before you found me, when I was still in the hospital, she thought I was dead. My best friend, he stepped in and took care of her and Carl. Got them to safety. They ended up falling for each other, making a new family. And God knows we had our share of problems, but I never held that against her. I understood why she did it and I was grateful that she and Carl were taken care of."

"Then I'm sure she'd understand, as well. Why can't you extend the same compassion and understanding you showed her to yourself?"

Rick looked up to the ceiling and shook his head, a small smile crossing his face as he acknowledged the irony of the situation. "I find that hard to do."

Morgan smiled at his friend's admission. " _Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment_. Now I can't take credit for that, but it's something that helps me every day, and I think it could help you too. You need to move on Rick, not just for yourself, but for everyone you love. The guilt you feel from moving on will be nothing compared to what you'll feel if something happens because you haven't."

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After leaving Morgan's house, Rick decided to walk along the perimeter. His eyes scanned the area as they routinely did on these walks, but he saw nothing, his mind too preoccupied with his thoughts to do anything else. He found himself in the farthest corner of the community, out of sight from the street and as alone as he could get within the walls. He rested his back against the wall and slid down until he was seated on the ground with his knees bent in front of him. He looked up to the sky and closed his eyes.

"I'm sorry," he whispered aloud as his eyes began watering. "I'm so sorry that you're not here with us. Our kids are...they're my everything, Lori. They are happy, safe, and so loved. So so loved. I promise you that nothing will ever stop that." He dropped his head in his hands and shakily inhaled as tears rolled down his cheeks. He let his emotions run free, not trying to keep them in check or worrying about anyone seeing him, and within a few minutes, he sat there quietly with dry eyes. He brought his right hand to his ring finger and removed it in one motion, then placed it in his left shirt pocket. So many times before he had toyed with the ring, moving it to his knuckle then back, never sure if it was the right time. Today there was no doubt.

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"Just please make sure he eats out there. He's wasting away," Eric said as he reached over and hooked a finger over the waistband of Aaron's khakis, pulling to show the roominess. "I've asked Daryl to do the same, but he doesn't seem to want to help."

"Cause I ain't his damn nanny," Daryl shot back causing Eric to roll his eyes. Michonne laughed at the banter between the two. The recruiting team had an interesting dynamic that she found endlessly amusing. They were all gathered around the car in Aaron's driveway waiting to head out. It was ten 'til eight, and the group was unsure if they would be joined by a fourth member yet.

"Look, you're all big boys, so you can make your own big boy decisions, but I'm just warning you, Aaron, if you leave your food laying around too long, it might not be there when you finally come for it," she said with a smirk.

"Yeah, don't let Miss Skinny fool ya, she can pack it away," Daryl said teasingly. She couldn't even argue, so she just nodded her head and smiled.

"Where's Rick at? It's gettin' close to leavin' time." Daryl's question was directed straight at Michonne which irritated her this morning given how things had ended between them last night.

"I don't know. I'm not his keeper," she answered half-jokingly to try to mask her annoyance.

"Ah, come on. That's some bullshit and you know it," Daryl said. His response elicited what could only be referred to as a death stare from Michonne.

"He said he was coming. If you're so concerned, you can go look for him," she said brusquely. Her tone made everyone take notice. Daryl brought his hands up in front of him signaling that he would back off. The awkward silence that ensued was mercifully cut short, though, by Eric's voice.

"Oh my god, look who it is!" he exclaimed as Rick made his way up the driveway. "Thank god," he added in a sing-songy tone under his breath.

Michonne looked Rick up and down, noticing that he was wearing the same clothes from last night and his eyes appeared to be blood shot.

"Morning everyone," he said as he tipped his head to the group members in greeting. His voice was hoarse and confirmed to Michonne that he hadn't slept since she'd last seen him. He looked directly at her, before speaking again. "Can I speak to you?"

Being singled out in the small group made her uncomfortable. She looked up at Aaron and Eric noticing the slightly stunned looks they shared. It was that of two people who suddenly felt out of place in their own yard. "I'll just be a minute, guys," she said as she walked toward Rick. They walked side by side and down the street for a few feet with their back to the crew in the driveway before Rick finally spoke.

 **A/N: I'm curious to see what you all think Morgan's back story will end up being on the show. Was it just Rick? Did he meet a zen ninja in the woods? Was it just some random person? Is there some other possibility that I'm leaving out all together? I have to say trying to come up with a reasonable back story for him was the biggest challenge of this chapter. You (and I) can look forward to lots of Grimes family 2.0 goodness next time around. It's always so much fun to write. Thanks so much reading!**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Thank you so much for your feedback on the last chapter. I was really nervous about writing about Morgan's journey, so I'm happy to hear that you liked it! As usual, we're picking up right where we left off. You may need a refresher from Chapter 6 to remind yourself on where we left off with Rick and Michonne. And dancer4life5, you are cracking me up! I took care of Rick this chapter just for you. :)** **Hope you all enjoy.**

 **Chapter 8, Day 3**

"I decided I'm not going on the run." Their pace slowed, but they continued walking down the street away from the group in Aaron's driveway.

"OK." She answered flatly. Rick waited to see if she would continue, but she didn't.

"You were right. Staying here for the kids and the community is the best move. We don't know if or when they're coming for us, but we need to be ready."

"So we're set," she said, all business, as she stopped walking with him and started to turn back towards the group. It was what she wanted to hear, but she wasn't going to reward him simply for doing what needed to be done in her eyes.

"No. We're not," he called after her. She turned to face him and he took a step closer to her, forcing her to acknowledge his presence for the first time during their conversation. "I'm sorry about what happened earlier. I didn't mean to dismiss you like that. I was just hell bent on getting out of this place. I was looking for another reason not to deal with all of the shit I've been putting off. And I realized I can't do that anymore. It's hurting the kids, you, me...everything."

"This happened in the last few hours?"

"Yes," he shook his head self-consciously knowing that he was probably worrying her instead of reassuring her like he intended to. "I'll tell you all about it when you get back. I'm good, though. Really. Better than I've been in a while."

She eyed him for a moment, her face starting to soften as she did. "Well, OK then." A slight grin formed on her face.

He rested his hands on her shoulders and began gathering her into a hug.

"Rick, what are you doing?" she asked. Her body was stiff, and he could feel her resisting against him. He chuckled in response.

"I'm saying good bye."

"Everyone can see us," she protested despite the fact that her body was already pressed against his and she'd tentatively placed her hands on his hips.

"So what," he whispered into her ear where his cheek was pressed against her head. "Just be careful out there. Get back to us soon." He felt her body relax finally and she dropped her forehead into the crook of his neck with playful exasperation.

"You know I will," she reassured him.

He exhaled a small laugh. "Believe me, I know you will. I say it more for my sake than yours." He began to pull away from her, letting his hands travel down her arms as he did.

She finally looked back toward the men gathered at the car. Eric was holding hands with Aaron, the other clutched over his chest. Daryl was leaning against the trunk of the car. They were all staring at them as she expected and quickly averted their eyes once they were caught.

"You know how much shit I'm gonna get for this?" she asked Rick as they made their way back to the group.

He reached behind her and lightly tugged at the katana where it rested across her lower back. "Nobody's gonna mess with you." She looked up at him and skeptically tilted her head, then returned her attention to the group as they came up to Aaron's driveway.

"Let's roll," she announced once they arrived, intentionally leaving no room for comments or questions from the peanut gallery.

Rick made his rounds saying good bye to Daryl and Aaron and wishing them a safe trip, then made his way back to the passenger's side of Aaron's car where Michonne stood watching them in the nook created by the open door and the side of the car. She settled into the front seat watching Rick the entire time. She had no doubt that she was making the right call by going out, but it was impossible not to feel that small, but real sense of fear that things may not go as planned. Rick closed her door behind her and stood looking at her through the windshield as they backed out of the driveway. He gave her a small nod which she returned.

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Rick entered his empty house and walked upstairs to the bedroom he shared with his children. He stood there for a minute, reeling from the events of the past 48 hours. He hadn't had a moment to himself for what seemed like days and now that he did, all he could think of was how much he needed to do in the next 48 hours. He pulled the wedding ring out of his pocket, turning it between his fingers, then looked around the sparsely furnished room for a place to store it, but there was no proper dresser or jewelry box. The small night stand between the twin beds seemed like the only option, but it certainly wasn't ideal.

"Dad?"

Rick's head snapped up in surprise as he thought he was alone in the house. Carl stood holding Judith in the doorway of the bedroom. He immediately closed his hand around the wedding ring to keep it out of his son's sight.

"What aren't you at school?"

"Dad...it's Saturday," he responded as he walked into the bedroom and took a seat next to his father on the bed.

"Right," Rick said shaking his head in disbelief at how disoriented he was. "Where were you when I came in?"

"We were in the back yard. I came up when I heard the front door close."

"Well, you're probably starving. Let's go make you and Judy some breakfast."

"Oh, we already ate. Michonne made us waffles before she left. We made extras for you, though. They're in the fridge." The smile on Carl's face showed what treat this was for him this morning.

"We have waffles?" Rick asked slightly confused.

"Yeah, we found a waffle maker in the cabinets a few days ago and Michonne promised to make them for us this weekend. They were so good. We put syrup on them today, but next time we're gonna try to make chocolate sauce. Maybe strawberries, too, if we can get some."

"She's the best," was all Rick could manage. Seeing how happy she had made his kids this morning, and knowing that she was outside the walls putting his their safety in front of her own overwhelmed him when he thought about it. It wasn't just what she meant to his kids, though. What she meant to him was growing in magnitude, as well. He had told her the truth when he said that he initially wanted to go on today's run to escape his problems, but the other side of it was that being with her just made him feel better, put his mind at ease, and he needed that for himself.

"Yep, she's the greatest," he said as he bounced his sister lightly in his lap to keep her entertained. "You have to work today?"

"Yeah, I do," Rick said with a frown, regretting that that he was putting a damper on his son's good mood. "I'm gonna rest a bit, though, so I'll take Judy for a few hours. You should go next door. Hang out for a while."

"Nah, that's OK," Carl responded.

"I'm serious. Go. Have some fun. You deserve it," Rick insisted. He took Judith from Carl's arms and rested her on his lap.

"Dad, after everything that happened the other night, I don't think Ron wants me around right now," Carl said alluding to Pete's death. Rick silently admonished himself for not making that connection.

"I'm sorry, Carl. I never meant for any of this to affect you." He placed his hand on his son's back to console him.

"I understand. It sucks, but hopefully things can go back to how they were soon."

"I think they will," he said as he continued to rub his back. "It's just gonna take some time." Carl put on a brave face for his father's benefit and nodded in agreement. "Look, I've got some things to take care of this afternoon, but why don't we do dinner and a movie tonight. You're choice," Rick offered. He felt guilty about causing Carl to be alienated from his friends, but more than that, he knew that he had to do a better job of being there for his kids. Their survival was of the utmost importance, but what was it worth if they weren't able to enjoy themselves? He would do everything in his power to safeguard the community, and he knew Michonne was out there doing the same thing. They would be prepared and cautious, but beyond that, there was nothing left to do but carry on with life.

"I think that sounds good," Carl said with a small smile.

"Good. Now go take a break and read a book or pay Tara a visit. I'll come find you to drop off Judy in a couple hours."

"Sounds good. I think I'm gonna head next door then," Carl said as he got up from the bed. Before he reached the door, though, he turned back around to his father. "Can I ask you something?"

"Of course, son."

"Is there something going on? You haven't been around much and now Michonne's carrying her sword again and going on runs." Rick looked at him for a moment and knew that he deserved the truth.

"There's a group out there that's been attacking communities. We think they're the one that got to Noah's. Aaron and Daryl found a base of theirs, so they're out there right now trying to gather more information so that we can get to them before they get to us."

Carl nodded solemnly. "Well, if I can help, just let me know."

Rick knew Carl was no longer an innocent in this world, but his reaction and willingness to fight struck him nonetheless. "I will."

"OK, well I see you in a little while. Love you," he said as he exited the room.

"I love you, too, son," Rick called after him. He sighed and looked down at Judith, then kissed the top of her head. "Love you too," he whispered. He opened the night stand drawer and placed the ring in a small container that he found inside. He then laid on his side, cradling the baby under his arm, and closed his eyes.

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"So how's everything going?" Aaron casually asked approximately 40 miles into their 50 mile trip out to warehouse. Michonne looked away from the window and stared at him, then started to laugh.

"Really?"

"I don't know! You haven't said anything since we left Alexandria."

"Things are fine. I'm just tired. Sorry I'm not good company this morning."

"So you're not upset?"

"About?"

"Nothing. Don't mind me. I'm just...just never mind," he stammered.

"Is this about Rick and me? Earlier?"

"Well...yeah," he confirmed once she acknowledged it.

"You saw my friend hug me good bye. No big deal," she said matter of factly hoping to diminish his curiosity.

"Yeah, but he didn't hug me," he said innocently tossing a look her way.

"Aww, don't take it personally. I'm sure he just didn't want to step on Eric's toes," she teased.

"Very funny," he deadpanned. "But seriously, you don't see it?"

She knew what he was getting at, and she also knew that unlike if he were to have asked her this question a few weeks or months ago, there was finally some recognition that things weren't as simple between them as they once were.

"I'm not blind," she answered. She bit down on her lower lip as soon as she finished speaking, and rolled her eyes at herself. On one hand, it felt good to finally address it, but on the other hand, this was far too personal a matter to discuss with him regardless of how much she liked him and how disarming he could be.

"But?" he asked with anticipation.

"But we're done with this conversation," she said sweetly. He groaned in response. "Put your signal on so Daryl knows to turn off here. We should walk the rest of the way."

They all parked in a clearing off the main road and quietly walked the half mile to the warehouse they had scoped out the day before. Once they reached the perimeter of the property, Michonne stopped dead in her tracks and felt her knees buckle.

"They cleared out," Daryl said aloud. All of the trucks that had been parked at the warehouse were gone and the gates were left wide open.

"We have to leave," she said.

"We should look around the property, see if there are any other signs of what happened," Aaron countered.

"No, we need to go back now!" she said more forcefully.

"Michonne, we're already here. Let's just have a look," Daryl said trying to reason with her.

"Look, there's nothing left to see!" she said gesturing to the abandoned site. "They could be headed to Alexandria as we speak. We need to get back and warn them if we're not too late already." The panic was rising in her voice, making Aaron and Daryl look nervously at each other.

"They could have gone anywhere," Daryl said.

"Fine, you want to stay? Stay. Check it out. I'm not taking that chance. Are you willing to take that chance, Aaron? With Eric back there?" He looked at Daryl apologetically, then back to Michonne and quietly shook his head no.

"Then let's go," she said turning immediately and running toward the car.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9, Day 3**

The walls were still standing, and there were no signs of breaches or destruction from the outside. Sasha saw their car pull up from her spot in the tower, and signaled the woman on gate duty to let them in. As the gates rolled back, Aaron and Michonne were confronted with life as usual in Alexandria. It was a sunny, brisk autumn Saturday and the community members were out and about taking advantage of it, completely oblivious to the world outside the walls.

"Does it ever get any less surreal when you come back?"

"Not really," Aaron said distracted by the scene in front of him, "but I can't tell you how relieved I am to see it right now."

"Yeah, me too," Michonne said quietly. They sat in the car for a moment, Aaron not pulling in immediately. She figured that much like herself, he was taking a minute to let the panic wear off. "You can go on without me. I'm going to head up to the tower to give Sasha an update on what's going on."

"You sure? I can do it. I know you probably want to check in on Rick and the kids."

"Nah, I'm good. Thank you, though," she said with a small smile as she got out of the car.

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Despite how irrational she knew her fear was, she wouldn't feel completely OK until she saw Rick, Carl, and Judith with her own eyes. After leaving the tower, she resisted the urge to run back home, and instead settled on a brisk walk. She opened the door, hoping to see all three of them hanging out in the living room, but the lights were off and there were no signs of activity. Everything was as she had left it earlier that morning. She walked up the stairs and found the door to Rick's bedroom ajar.

"Rick?" she called out quietly as she pushed the door open wider and entered the room. There was no answer, but she was greeted by a most welcome sight. Judith was sitting in her crib in the corner of the room babbling away and playing with a set of blocks. She looked up at the sound of Michonne's voice and began to bang the blocks in her hands together with excitement. Michonne felt a cold rush of blood go through her body. The quick sense of relief she felt was replaced by a renewed sense of anxiety. She had made it back before anything had happened, but the threat was still as viable as ever in her mind. She walked over to the crib and lifted the baby, squeezing her tight against her chest. Her hands were trembling, so she dropped one to her side and shook it, physically trying to rid herself of the anxiety, but it was no use.

"Rick?" she called out again louder.

He popped his head out of the en suite bathroom at the sound of his name. His hair was damp from the shower and he had a towel wrapped around his waist. "Michonne?"

As soon as she saw him, she angled her body away from his to give him privacy. "Yeah, it's me. I didn't mean to barge in. You just didn't answer when I called out for you."

"What are you doing back already?" he asked as he walked over to her and Judith, apparently not as concerned about his privacy as she was.

"The site was cleared out when we got there. I was afraid I was too late...that they'd already come for us." She thought she was doing a good job of keeping her emotions in check, but Rick's reaction told her otherwise. He studied her face for a moment, then looked down at her hand which was trembling as she held Judith. She balled it into a fist trying to hide it from his view, but her attempt was futile at that point. He placed his hand over hers where it rested over his daughter's back.

"It's not happening again," he said looking her in the eye. It was a simple statement, but his eyes and his touch said more. It was reassurance that she hadn't failed, that her past had not repeated itself, but it was also a promise from him that they wouldn't let it happen again. She nodded and squeezed his hand.

"Who knows about what you found?"

"Just Aaron, Daryl, you, me, and Sasha. I thought she should know since she's on watch."

"Good call," he said nodding in agreement. "Just let me get dressed. I'll meet you downstairs in a few minutes so we can get to work." He gave her hand a quick squeeze before letting go and returning to the bathroom.

Michonne grabbed a pair of booties for Judith and snagged her blankie from the crib. She made her way downstairs and started toward the dining table, but changed her mind and opted for the front porch instead. Being outside would at least make her feel like she was more in touch with what was going on, even though she knew it would have no real impact. She sat on their front stoop with Judith in her lap watching people pass by while they were waiting for Rick. To her surprise, a few of their neighbors actually looked up at her and waved hello which she took as a good sign that perhaps they were in better graces with them than she thought. She couldn't rule out the possibility, though, that Judith Grimes's popularity was just that powerful of an entity on its own despite her controversial father. Either way, it wasn't a bad thing in Michonne's mind.

After a few minutes, Rick finally joined them on the porch dressed in his standard boots and black jeans with his gun holster slung low across his hips. His uniform shirt and windbreaker were, once again, replaced with a button down similar to those he wore back at the prison. He had a large, rolled up paper in one hand, and 2 waffles peeking out of their foil wrapping in the other. Once he sat down, he set the paper between them and took another bite of the waffles, holding them in one hand is if they were a sandwich.

She looked at him and grinned, "Finally getting around to breakfast?"

He nodded his head as he swallowed the bite he had just taken. "Yep. They're good," he complimented her as he peeled back the foil to access more of the waffles.

"Yeah, well, they're better when they're hot."

"And they'd be even better with chocolate sauce," he one-upped her causing her to crack a smile.

"Somebody told you about our plans for next weekend, I see."

"You kidding me? It's like the first thing he said to me. You made his day."

"Well, he deserves it," she answered. "Where is he, by the way?"

"Next door visiting Tara. I told him to go have some fun before I needed him to watch Judy this afternoon. I was supposed to watch a movie with him tonight, but I don't think that's gonna happen now," he said sighing. He had finished the waffles and rolled the foil into a ball that he was fidgeting with in his hands. She looked at him and nodded. She wanted nothing more than to make that a reality for them, but given their current situation, it looked like surviving would be edging out living for the near future.

"So what's this?" she asked nodding down at the paper between them.

"Maps of the property and the surrounding area that Reg drafted." He unrolled it, and spread it out between them. Michonne shifted to the side with Judith still in her lap to get a better look. "Let's go over what we know already."

"We've got this group that calls themselves the wolves. There's at least two of them out there, but likely more. They prey on the living by attacking communities and setting up traps. The set of the traps we found had semi-trucks filled with walkers that have been removed in the past 24 hours. And we think they were the same group that took down Noah's community based on the 'W' markings on the walkers' heads there and at the warehouse." She wasn't saying anything either one of them didn't already know, but it ensured they were on the same page and helped to think out loud.

"And their warehouse is about 50 miles from here?" Rick asked.

"Yeah, just southwest of here. And it's 50 miles north of Richmond. Basically a straight line," she added. He chewed on his lower lip as he went over the logistics in his head.

"And we have no idea which direction they went from the warehouse, but we could assume they're moving north based on where they've been and the fact that their walkers are making their way to our camp?" he asked.

"Yeah, like I said earlier, it was nearly impossible to track around the warehouse because of all the paved roads. These walkers are either just stragglers drifting from previous attack sites or someone close by could be releasing them. I'd go with the latter because it's better to be safe than sorry."

"So thinking back to what we saw at Shirewilt, they flat destroyed that place. They weren't looking to take it for themselves, seems like they just moved on after the attack. There's probably no reasoning with these people, so we might as well take that option off the table now. It could be ugly. Everyone's gonna need to be armed."

"Everyone's gonna need to be _trained_. Aside from our group and a few other community members, these people have no idea what they're doing. You know that could be just as dangerous, someone could get hurt."

"Yeah, I know, and we will train them, but we may not have time."

"Well...maybe we set up small groups, trained members with untrained members. Almost like a buddy system. It's not ideal, but in the short term, at least it provides coverage for everyone and organizes people. If we get displaced, no one would be on their own."

"It could work. We should set up an off-site meeting place, too. Just in case," he said.

"Yeah," she replied knowingly. Their group had reunited against all odds after the fall of the prison, but there was no way they would leave it up to chance again. "We'll get someone from the construction team to weigh in on a place since they've been outside the walls the most and there's enough of them that know their way around out there and can direct people."

"Keeping this group out altogether would be ideal, though," Rick said turning his attention to the map.

"Of course," she agreed.

"So we've got one watch tower with 180 degrees of clear sight lines at best, leaving all this area vulnerable," he said as he traced his left hand across the back half of their community on the map.

"The front gate of Noah's community was untouched," Michonne reminded him. "They came straight through the woods and broke through a wall in the back corner." They looked up from the map at the same time and looked at each other with shared unease. Their house was at the end of the cul-de-sac, farthest from the watch tower and set away from the other main access roads leading into the community.

"Well, we need to get construction on building at least two more platforms as fast as possible here and here," he said pointing out areas to the side of their house and behind Aaron's. She watched his fingers move across the map and noticed that something was missing. She looked to his left wrist and saw his watch in place as she expected, then down to his hand which was without his ring for the first time she could ever recall. She looked at his face, completely absorbed by the task at hand, then back to the area of the map he was pointing at.

"In the meantime, I guess we'll give new meaning to working from home," he said dryly.

"Sorry. What?" she asked feeling like she had missed part of what he said.

"Taking watch from our roof until they can build the platforms."

"Right. So 12 on, 12 off?" she asked about divvying up the watch duties.

"That's rough," he remarked, less than enthused about sitting on his roof for that many hours straight.

"Not compared to the alternative," she pointed out. "I'll start this afternoon until we get a better schedule in place."

"I can take it. You've been going nonstop. You've gotta be exhausted."

"Nah, I've got it. You're not that much better off than I am. Anyway, you've got movie night." He shook his head no to that, but she protested. "Yes, you do. We'll go run this by Deanna right now, then call a meeting to assign responsibilities, and get things set up. I'm not sure there's much more we can do to prepare. We're on stand by now. You can afford to take 2 hours tonight. I'll cover you. And if something happens, we're both here to deal with it."

"We're finding our balance," he said shaking his head in disbelief that he could feel at all positive about their conversation considering the circumstances.

"We are."

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Michonne sat on the flat ledge of the metal roof just outside her bedroom window with binoculars in hand and a sniper rifle laid across her lap. Her eyes scanned the wooded area just beyond the walls. The sun was starting to set as she kept watch and reflected on the events of the day. They were by no means in the clear, but they were better off than the day before. Deanna had absolved herself of duties regarding this matter and given Rick and Michonne full control over the operation. With substantial support from their group, they were setting their plans in motion. She was happy they were fortifying the community and relieved to be with Rick and the children, but looking out over the woods, she couldn't help but think of the missed opportunity of getting to the wolves first. If they had any leads, she'd be out there. With the loss of the warehouse, though, she just couldn't justify it. The sound of the window opening caught her attention and caused her to look back over her shoulder.

"What are you doing?" she asked as she saw Carl crawling through the window. "You're supposed to be spending time with your dad."

"I am," he answered as he carefully inched his way toward her and sat to her right with his legs hanging over the edge and the biggest grin on his face. She eyed him suspiciously, then looked back over her shoulder again where she saw Rick approaching the open window.

"What happened to movie night?" she asked as she turned her attention back to Carl.

"It just didn't feel right to hang out without you," he said shrugging his shoulders. He had the uncanny ability to get her right in the heart. She felt like she was going to melt right then and there, but she was interrupted by the feel of something hitting her back. She looked behind her to find a bag of microwaved popcorn Rick had tossed at them to free his hands and him scooting into place on her left side. She grabbed the bag of popcorn and turned to Rick.

"You guys didn't have to do this," she said to him in a low voice as if Carl wouldn't be able to hear her.

"Don't look at me. His night, his choice," Rick answered pointing at Carl. He grabbed a can of Coke from his back pocket, popped the top and passed it over to her before pulling out a second one for himself.

Carl produced one from the pocket of his hoodie and opened it as well. He raised the can and tilted it towards his father and Michonne prompting them to do the same. "Cheers," he said as they clinked cans.

"Cheers," Michonne and Rick said in unison.

"It's actually kinda nice up here," Carl said taking in the view. "It'd be awesome if we had a balcony or something."

"Well soon enough we'll have our very own watchtower in the yard. We'll see how awesome you think it is when you start getting assigned shifts," Rick teased as he took in the view himself. He had to admit that in another time and place, this wouldn't be a bad way to spend the evening.

"You wouldn't even have to ask me. I'd love it," Carl answered causing Rick and Michonne to give each other a look.

"You heard that, right?" he asked her.

"Oh, I heard it," she said to him, then turned to Carl. "Sorry friend, but I have a feeling this one's gonna come back to bite ya."

She opened the back of popcorn and took a handful for herself then passed it to Rick. They looked on with amusement as Carl tried to backpedal from his previous statement.

"Well, I wouldn't mind it because it is nice to be outside...with a view...but I wouldn't want to be out here all day every day. Especially not in the winter."

"See, that's better. You just need to be more specific. Set your terms and protect your interests. Don't overextend yourself," she explained.

"Protect your interests?" Rick scoffed. "You his lawyer or something?"

"Or something," she said with a smirk.

"I think I like this. Can I hire you for future negotiations?" Carl asked.

"For a fee. Sure," she said with a smile.

Rick sighed and looked at the two of them wearily. "Wonderful." He then looked specifically at Michonne, "I thought _we_ were a team," he teased her. She frowned at him playfully, but before she could respond, Carl piped in.

"We're already a team, Dad. Sorry."

"That true?" Rick looked at Michonne and raised his eyebrow questioning his son's statement. She raised her binoculars to her eyes and looked out beyond the wall.

"You know, I'm very busy keeping watch right now. I shouldn't be distracted," she said unable to keep from cracking a smile. She tapped her foot against Rick's, though, in a sign of solidarity.

"Some teammate you got there, son," Rick called over to Carl.

"Yeah, no kidding. I'm starting to rethink this whole thing," Carl responded.

Michonne couldn't stop herself from smiling. She could easily end this back and forth by declaring her allegiance to Team Grimes, which was the actual truth, but she was enjoying this far too much.

 **A/N: Let's be honest, I read and write fanfic for the character interactions that we don't get to see on the show, especially those of our beloved Michonne and Grimes family. I'm not really here for intricate plots and action-I'll leave that to the show because I'd rather see it than read about it. This story won't let me entirely avoid it, though, so I'm giving it a shot. I never would have thought that I'd spend hours consulting a map of the ASZ and thinking up battle plans, but I did. No worries, though, there will be plenty of fluff to balance out the other stuff.**

 **If anyone's curious, here's a link to the map to help you visualize the lay out better:**

 **2015/03/04/over-analyze-these-screenshots-and-map-of-the-walking-dead-alexandria-safe-zone/**

 **Anyway, thanks for following along, reading, and reviewing! You guys keep me motivated and make this fun!**


	10. Chapter 10

**AN: T** **hanks so much for reading and reviewing. I feel like more people are coming to the party which is always fun!**

 **Songbird11-I couldn't agree more. Rick and Michonne united on all fronts are just scarily strong. All hail the king and queen!**

 **Cake by the pound-I mean, I think you know how I feel. Just thank you.** **J**

 **Focused on prosperity-I so agree. With Rick in his right mind, ASZ would be far better off with him as leader. With Michonne, of course.**

 **Simple1234-Thank you! And your spidey sense is going off for good reason.**

 **Severelybabykryptonite-Thank you!**

 **Babemalf-Thank you so much! Yes, Daryl is back safe and sound. I thought about leaving him out there to investigate, but Michonne wouldn't roll like that.**

 **Lyra Verse-Thanks for reading! I'm glad you like it-I'm such a fan of your work!**

 **Dancer4life5-Thanks!** **I feel like you're always sitting on my shoulder when I write like Rick's guardian angel. I'm like, have I taken care of little bae enough this chapter?**

 **Chapter 10, Night 3**

"Can I see those?"

Before she could even answer, Rick reached for binoculars in her hands and brought them up to his eyes. He had sent Carl in to get ready for bed a few minutes before, but stayed seated next to her on the roof. It was almost as if a switch had been turned off the minute his son left as she noticed the light-heartedness fade away as he returned his attention to work. She looked over at him while he scanned the area, glancing at his watch which read 9:15 PM.

"You know you have 3 more hours until you're on duty."

"Yeah, I know," he said as he surveyed the area.

"Then you should get some rest now because I'll definitely be looking for you around midnight."

"You're mean," he said with a slight quirk of his lips.

"No, I'm just tired," she shot back.

He dropped the binoculars from his face and looked at her sympathetically, "You know I'm just kidding. I'm gonna try to get a third person to take watch from here. It doesn't make sense for us to take this on by ourselves when we're already spread so thin. Aaron and Eric have Daryl to help cover their place. Maggie is pitching in at the watch tower with Sasha and Spencer. I was thinking of asking Morgan tomorrow."

She wanted to believe he was still kidding, but he didn't crack a smile.

"What?" he asked, obviously picking up on her resistance.

"I'm just surprised you'd single him out. Do you really think he can handle it?"

"He's more than capable. You know that from past experience," he said referring to their visit to his hometown where she encountered Morgan for the first time.

"I guess what I'm asking is whether you think he's willing to do what needs to be done. I don't think he is," she said.

"He's invested in this place. He'll defend it, and if it comes down to it, I think he'll do what he needs to do," Rick assured her. Michonne took in a deep breath and exhaled, frustrated that just when she thought they were finally on the same page, something else had come up.

"Those two men he left alive in the woods...he told me he thought they deserved a second chance. After everything they told him they've done and what they tried to do to him, he thought they would change? You and I both know that doesn't happen. What would he do if someone came to this wall on his watch? I know what we'd do."

Rick sighed, knowing she was right. "I had a long conversation with him this morning and I don't think he's as far off as we thought, but you're right. I'll talk to him about it tomorrow and see where his head's at. We won't do anything we're not comfortable with."

"Is that where you were before I left with the group?"

"Yeah. I wanted to make amends. Find out what happened to him. I understand where he's coming from now and he helped me understand where I need to be."

"And where's that?"

"Here," he said simply and certainly. His eyes felt like they were boring into her with an intensity and honesty that made her feel as though she'd lost her breath for a moment. She tilted her head slightly as she stared at him, wordlessly asking him to give her an explanation if he meant anything less than what she thought he did, but he didn't waver. She broke his gaze and looked to downward, her mind running through the events of the day. From his apology to their hug to the absence of his ring, there was little doubt in her mind that he meant here with her and nothing else.

"It's awfully quiet out here," he said sheepishly interrupting the silence that had overtaken them. She grabbed his left hand and gave him a comforting squeeze before looking up at him with a grin which he returned. She wasn't sure that there was any more she could do or say at this moment, but she wanted him to know that she was happy to have him here with her. He leaned over and pressed a light kiss to her temple before speaking again.

"Well, I'll let you get back to your watch," he said quietly as he released her hand and started pushing himself away from the ledge of the roof. He stood and walked to the window, but turned back before he re-entered the house. "I'll sleep right here, just in case you need me," he said pointing to the area in her bedroom just below the window.

"Just take the bed," she called back to him. He waved her off declining the offer. "Really. I don't mind," she assured him. He nodded and smiled ever so slightly to himself then climbed through the window. She watched over her shoulder as he stood at the side of her bed, removed his boots, and turned down the covers, then turned her back to the house once she knew he had settled in. She brought her hands to her face, feeling the warmth in her cheeks and couldn't help but smile. She took a deep breath and tried to push their exchange out of her mind so that she could focus on the task at hand.

xxxxx

Michonne didn't have the time, but she was almost certain that she was at the tail end of her shift. As she stared at the same tree tops that she had been looking at for the past several hours, she found herself dreaming of all of the things she was looking forward to the minute she entered that house: a long hot shower, at least two minutes of brushing her teeth, the clean set of flannel PJ's she found in her dresser drawer the other day that she could finally wear since the temperature had dropped, and beloved bed with its crisp white sheets and plush comforter that would be nice and warm once she got in thanks to a certain someone.

 _Bang._

Bang bang.

She immediately jumped to her feet at the sound of gun shots. She snapped her head around quickly, but couldn't see where the shots had come from. Before she could even call for him, Rick appeared at the window.

"Do you see anything?"

"No! It sounds like they came from the direction of Aaron's house, though."

"Stay on your post. I'm gonna go check it out," he said as he quickly refastened his holster to his waist and reached for the machete that he had placed on her dresser. As he turned to leave the room, she called out after him.

"Rick!" He turned from the doorway he was passing through and looked back. "Send the kids in here. I don't want them alone." He nodded and jogged out of the room.

She walked to the edge of the roof to expand her field of vision, but couldn't see anything. There was silence. No voices, no more gun shots.

"What's going on?" Carl called out from the window holding his little sister in his arms. His eyes were still half shut with sleep, and his hair tousled.

"Not sure yet. We heard gun shots, so your dad went to check it out. I wanted you guys close by just in case. Go lay down," she said gently trying not to worry him.

"You know that's not gonna happen now," he said a little more clearly as he woke up and acclimated to the current situation.

"Then pull that bench over and have a seat," she said gesturing to the tufted bench at the end of her bed. He dragged it over to the window as told and sat there holding his still sleeping sister.

"Do you think it's them?" Carl asked.

"I don't know," she answered honestly. "Could just be walkers."

"You wouldn't look so worried if that was true," he pointed out.

"Well, let's just hope that's all it is." She scanned the area and it was still quiet. There was no activity on the portion of the street that she could see and she couldn't even hear the voices she would have expected to hear once Rick got to the scene.

"Did you hear that?" Carl called out. She looked back at him with a questioning look. She heard nothing at all, in fact, which was more concerning than comforting. She just shook her head and they sat listening for a moment until a faint, but persistent knocking sound made its way upstairs.

"It's the front door. Someone's knocking," he clarified. He stood up from the bench.

"Carl, no. We don't know what's going on. Just sit."

"But what if someone needs help?"

"Anyone who needs me knows where I am. No," she said firmly.

The knocking continued, and she could see Carl growing anxious. "But what if something is really wrong?"

She quickly thought back to the meeting she and Rick held for the community earlier that afternoon where they warned them of the threat and went over safety plans and assignments. She wasn't even sure if they were constables anymore, but they took the lead and had promised these people safety. She motioned for Carl to move and climbed through the window. She took the still sleeping baby from his arms and handed him her sniper rifle.

"You stay right here. Eyes forward. Shoot if you need to." He nodded and quickly moved into position.

Michonne set the baby in the middle of the bed, and grabbed her katana before running downstairs. The knocking continued as she reached the foyer where she quickly peaked through the blinds. _Shit_ she muttered to herself while undoing the latch.

"What are you doing here?" she asked Jessie who was standing on her door step with one arm around each of her boys.

"We heard the commotion and got scared. What's going on?"

"I don't know yet. Whose house were you assigned to?" Michonne asked referring to the safety plans they had set up that afternoon.

"Tobin's? I don't know. I was just so scared and I couldn't think. Is Rick here?" she asked peering over Michonne's shoulder.

"No. He's not. Hurry up. Get in," Michonne said as she stepped aside and let the remaining Andersons in, quickly shutting the door and bolting it behind them.

"What you did just now was not safe, Jessie. We have these plans for a reason," Michonne lightly scolded her.

"I'm sorry," Jessie responded avoiding eye contact with her as she looked around the living room. She was entirely and too quickly subdued in Michonne's opinion, but she tried to put herself in her shoes: she was helpless, alone, and completely inexperienced with this type of situation.

"It's OK. You can stay here for now. Come with me." She led them upstairs to the now empty bedroom that Rick and the children had vacated, then returned to her bedroom to continue her watch duties.

"Who was it?" Carl asked still propped on the windowsill with his eye looking through the scope of the rifle.

"Jessie and the boys," she said as she tapped his shoulder holding her hand out for the gun. "You see anything?"

"Nope. I've got this if you want to go check on things outside."

"I appreciate it, but no," she said as he finally released the gun from his grip. "We stick to the plan for now." He moved out of her way and she patted him on the shoulder as he did.

"I'm gonna go check on Ron and Sam if that's OK with you. They're probably scared."

She nodded in approval. She was always amazed, but never surprised by the young man's maturity and depth of compassion.

"Carl," she lightly grabbed his shoulder again, pulling him back towards her. "Thank you," she said as she squeezed him to her side and placed a kiss on top of his head.

"No problem. Just doing my part," he said with a satisfied smile as he walked away.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11, Night 3**

"Hey!"

Michonne looked down from her post to see Aaron, looking well and unscathed from all outward appearances, standing in their yard waving her down.

"What's going on?" she called out to him.

"We need to talk. Come meet me around front."

She nodded and rushed into her bedroom through the window. She looked to her bed where Carl was sleeping beside his sister. He'd only fallen asleep thirty minutes or so ago after what was proving to be an eventful night which made her hate herself for what she was about to do. She knelt by the bedside so that she was face to face with him and gently rubbed his arm.

"Carl," she whispered. He woke more easily than she thought he would causing her to believe that he probably hadn't really been sleeping at all. "Hey, I need to head out for a bit. I'm not sure how long I'll be gone."

"I'll take watch," he responded, already propped on his elbows and working his way out of bed.

"Thank you," she said as she stood up. "I won't be far if you need me." She turned and raced down the stairs, a mixture of adrenaline and fear propelling her toward the door and on to the porch where she found Aaron waiting for her.

"What happened?" she asked with urgency. He looked nervous to her; then again, he was skittish at baseline.

"We were attacked," he said. Her eyes widened at the incongruity between his choice of words and the calm she observed outside. "Three of the wolves scaled the wall behind my house. Eric fired a warning shot, then they dropped off the wall and started to run back into the woods. He got one in the leg, but they kept running."

"Where's Rick?" she asked unsure why he hadn't come back to tell her this information himself.

"He, uh...he and Daryl took off after them." She looked out toward the street for a moment, then back at Aaron.

"Did he say anything before he left?"

"Not really. They just looked at each other and said let's go. Then he told me to let you know," he said apologetically knowing it wasn't a satisfying answer.

"Which way did they go?"

"They left on foot out of gate by my place and ran into the woods in the same direction the men came from."

"He's calling their bluff," she said to herself.

"What?"

"They only sent three men to take our community? And you scared them off just like that? Without even putting up a fight? That's a half-assed attempt considering we know what they're capable of..."

"So they were just trying to draw us out…" Aaron pieced together. She nodded affirmatively. "Are you sure Rick and Daryl get that?"

"Positive." She couldn't help but laugh to herself. She was certain Rick got it because he wrote the damn book on it. "They're coming back for us, so we need to be ready. Who's in the tower?"

"Spencer, I think."

"OK. Good. I need you to go next door and get Maggie and Sasha. We need our best shooters posted at your place and mine to cover the corners. While you're there, tell the rest of my group to meet here as soon as possible," she said pointing to her porch.

"Got it," Aaron said.

"After that, can you and Eric go door to door and alert everyone? People need to get with their assigned groups and stay inside. They shouldn't be out here."

"I'm on it."

"Thank you," she said sincerely before she turned to head back inside to give Carl a quick update.

xxxxx

"You sure it's the best play for us to be out here? Feels like we should be back home, ready to fight," Daryl said as he knelt next to Rick behind some brush on the side of the road outside of the walls.

"Never can be completely sure, but if a group of them comes back on foot, I know our people can take them. If they come for our walls with one of their trucks, at least we have a shot at slowing them down or stopping them altogether before they can do any damage. They're comin' regardless."

"They could come from any direction," Daryl countered.

"They could, but with trucks that size, they're gonna have to come in on a cleared road. Michonne and I looked over the maps earlier. There's four roads leading to the community. All visible from our look outs. We should see them before they hit. I'm just hoping they'll come through this way since it's the farthest from the tower."

"You and 'Chonne come up with this plan before hand?"

"Not exactly."

Daryl chuckled, "So y'all psychic or some shit?"

"Nah, you know _'Chonne_ ," he teased Daryl for using a nickname he didn't even know she had, "she probably had this shit figured out before we did."

"Yeah, you're woman's a bad ass for sure," Daryl said more seriously. Rick just shook his head in amusement and kept his mouth shut and his eyes on the road.

All of a sudden, the sound of gun shots rang out from the community. Both men instinctively stood and braced their weapons. Daryl started toward the community, but Rick stayed planted.

"Come on man, let's go!" Daryl shouted to Rick.

"Hold up. Just listen out for a second. Could just be a few men, another distraction," Rick stood listening with his hand on his gun. The shots continued and he could hear yelling in the distance, but couldn't make out the individual voices. The gun shots and yelling were quickly drowned out, though, by a loud crash. "Shit," Rick muttered as he and Daryl looked at each other knowing that one of The Wolves' trucks had made its way into their walls.

They broke out into a sprint back to the community and saw Sasha perched on Aaron's roof shooting into the community as they arrived at the gates.

"Sasha, which way?" Rick shouted.

"They broke through by the church!" she yelled back.

Daryl and Rick rounded the perimeter until they found the breach in the wall where the large semi-truck had backed into the community. It was riddled with bullets and two men were slumped in their seats in the cab of the truck with fatal head shots. Rick yelled up to Spencer to alert him to their presence then quickly made his way through the break in the wall to find at least 40 walkers moving toward the center of the community and just as many already put down and scattered on the streets. Maggie, Sasha, and Spencer were taking out walkers on the periphery from their perches atop the community while Michonne and the rest of their group were lined up in formation in the center working their way through the small herd. Daryl and Rick made their way around the walkers, taking out the strays that lunged for them along the way, until they joined the formation.

"Glad you guys made it back," she shouted to Rick and Daryl over the moans of walkers and sounds of her group members' exertion from her place in the center of the group. "Stay in formation. We're almost through this pack. We got this!" she yelled to encourage her group, not slowing for a second while she took out walker after walker with her katana. Her words were met with hollers from the other group members showing their solidarity as they continued to thin out the herd.

xxxxx

Michonne stood just inside the doorway of her bedroom looking over the sleeping Grimes children in her bed. She had one hand on the door knob, but she couldn't bring herself to close the door and walk away just yet. Familiar footsteps made their way up the stairs and stopped just behind her.

"Everyone OK?" he asked in a hushed voice as he leaned his right arm against the door frame. His face hovered just above her right shoulder; he was so close that his breath tickled her ear when he spoke and she could feel the warmth of his body against her back.

"Everyone's OK," she exhaled in relief.

"All thanks to _you_ , you know," he said. He nudged the small of her back with one of his knuckles to emphasize the _you_. "You held it down out there."

"I don't know about that."

"You did. We counted five members of The Wolves dead along with all of the walkers, and more importantly every single person here is still alive." She allowed herself a small smile at that news.

"What's it looking like out there?" she asked tilting her head back slightly to look at him.

"We're all right for now. We moved the truck in front of the hole in the wall until construction can get to it later this morning. Everything else is cleaned up and the bodies will be taken out and burned tomorrow. Safety check is done and everyone is accounted for. And all posts are manned in case there's a second round," he rattled off. "I came up to relieve Maggie," he added.

"No need. She said she'd stay on for a few more hours so we could get some sleep. She's been on nights in the tower, so she was able to rest during the day."

She could feel Rick let out a small laugh. He turned his head and looked back at his room still occupied by Jessie and her boys, then to Michonne's which housed his kids. "Well that'd be great if we actually had a place to sleep."

"Honestly, I don't even care about sleep. I'm so hungry right now I feel like my stomach is going to eat itself," she said as she wrapped her arm across belly as it started to growl as if on cue.

"Come on," he said as he motioned toward the kitchen with his head. He reached around her to shut the bedroom door and ushered her down the stairs.

Once they reached the kitchen, Rick stood in front of the open fridge for a second surveying the contents before realizing the futility of doing so. "PB and J?" he asked as he grabbed the peanut butter and jelly off the shelf.

"Like we have a choice," she said as she grabbed the bread, two plates, and two butter knives and met him at the kitchen island. The stood side by side divvying up the ingredients and making their sandwiches in tandem, their elbows bumping occasionally as they worked.

Michonne paused for a moment and sighed causing Rick to look over at her. "What's wrong?"

"I could really go for some Fox Brothers right now," she said wistfully. Rick let out a laugh and looked up at the clock on the living room wall.

"You want barbecue at five o'clock in the morning?"

"Yeah," she said indignantly.

"Even after all that?" he asked with disbelief, pointing his peanut butter coated knife toward the pile of mangled walkers that sat outside at the end of the street.

"Yep," she said with a smile.

"That's just gross."

"Really, Rick?" she asked shaking her head. "Really? That's the thing that crosses the line? After everything you've seen?" her voice getting higher as her disbelief grew.

His cheeks were flush and sore from trying to hold back a smile. "That's it," he said as seriously as possible.

"Unreal," she muttered under her breath. She looked up from making her sandwich to make eye contact with him which was all it took to make them burst into laughter. Movement in the living room caught their attention and their laughter tapered off as they realized they had been joined by someone else.

"What's going on?" Jessie asked with a frown as she stepped further into the living room. Her eyes were focused solely on Rick.

"Just making a snack," he answered as he nodded at the food in front of them. "You hungry?" he asked, the trace of a smile from the moment she had interrupted still lingering on his face.

"No..." she paused and furrowed her brow. "How can you two be laughing and carrying on like this with everything that's happening?"

Michonne and Rick exchanged a glance. It was obvious to Michonne that Jessie wasn't interested in her thoughts from her earlier behavior and current body language, so she held her tongue and let Rick answer.

"Jessie, what happened today...this is real life now. It's what I tried to warn you all about. We live in a dangerous world, but you'll adjust and learn how to deal with it. There's no such thing as good times or bad times anymore. It all just bleeds together and you have to make the most of it when you can."

She stared at Rick for a moment and furrowed her brow. "That sounds like some self-serving load of crap," she said shaking her head.

"It's not," he offered earnestly with a shrug of his shoulders. "It's reality."

She huffed in response and made her way back upstairs. Michonne, nearly slack jawed, looked at Rick who was reluctant to look at her. "She doesn't get it," he said.

"Yeah...I mean...I don't even know what to say," Michonne said still stunned by that exchange. "That wasn't just about the noise and laughing..."

"No," he said with a sigh.

"You need to go talk to her?"

"There's nothing else to say."

 **A/N: So that's that. Hope you liked it…or didn't hate it too much. There's always next chapter!**

 **I just started opened an account on tumblr (thanks to the prompting of some wise folks), so feel free to follow me at birdnmouse for story updates!**

 **Also just wanted to give a shout out to Fans of Fiction on YouTube. I'm sure most of you are aware of them, but these two lovely ladies have a channel dedicated to reading and reviewing fan fictions (especially Richonne fics-woo!), and they are fab! They reviewed the first chapter of Into Dawn this week if you want to check it out.**

 **And last thing, Fox Brothers is a popular BBQ restaurant in Atlanta in case that reference was confusing to anyone.**


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12, Day 4**

"Thief."

"Look, it was this, baby clothes, or one of Carol's sweaters, and I just couldn't go there," Michonne explained to Rick as she walked out of the downstairs bathroom still slightly damp from her shower wearing his white oxford shirt with a pair of clean jeans with her hair piled loosely on top of her head. She'd pieced together the outfit from the clean clothes that had been left in the dryer, thankful for the fact that daily chores had been neglected the past few days.

Rick just grinned as he watched her throw her dirty clothes in the in laundry room then make her way over to the couch. She plopped down on her back, using the arm rest as a pillow.

"I didn't know how much I needed this," she said as she stretched her arms over her head and yawned.

"Yeah, it's been nonstop," he said as he walked over to the opposite end of their white couch and started to sit, only to be blocked by her legs extending across the spot he planned on occupying. He looked at her in confusion.

"You're all dirty," she said pointing to his shirt which gave away that he'd been engaged in battle just a few hours before. He looked down at himself and rolled his eyes. This wasn't even close to the worst he'd been before.

"You know, whoever picked out this couch clearly had no idea of what was to come," he said as he took a seat on the floor in front of her and leaned his back up against the couch.

"God, how could you have?" she asked rhetorically thinking back to the turn. Though unlikely, one could accept the small risk that your life could be turned upside down by a natural disaster like hurricane or a tornado, but a zombie apocalypse would never have been on the radar. She pulled the throw off the back of the couch and draped it over herself, wedging the excess in between his back and the couch. Once he realized what she was doing, he shook his head with exasperation.

"You could just change, you know."

"I'm gonna be back out there in 2 hours cleaning up the mess we just made. What's the point?"

"I see your point, but _this_ stays here. We can always wash the blanket."

"You know, the next time Glenn's out on a run, I'm gonna ask him keep an eye out for one of those plastic furniture covers so I can actually sit on my damn couch," he said knowing it would get a ride out of her. During their short stint in Alexandria so far, he'd come to learn that she was impossibly neat. Her bed was made every morning, laundry always folded right away, and pillows always fluffed and straightened when she got up from the couch.

"Like my grandma had? No, those are hideous. Not in my house," she said adamantly causing Rick to chuckle.

"Well, it may be the only way to keep the peace between us." She thumped him playfully on the back of the head causing him to wince in pain and rub his hand over the area, the same spot she had clocked him in earlier that week.

"You can't keep doing that," he teased her.

She turned onto her side so that she could see his profile and gave him a rueful look. "Sorry. I won't do it again," she promised. He just groaned in response, which she chose to interpret as _I accept your apology_.

"Just so you know, I'm not trying to be difficult," she continued, "It's just that this is our home and it needs last us a long time, so we have to take care of it. No blood, guts, or mud on the white couch doesn't seem so unreasonable, right?" she asked with a small smile. "We can't go out and buy a new one just like that anymore." She expected some sort of smile or reaction out of him, but he seemed lost in his thoughts for a moment.

"You really think we'll be here for a while?" he asked turning his body slightly toward hers so that he could see her face more clearly.

"If everything goes as planned, yeah. I do."

"And you see yourself here? With us?" he asked tentatively which gave her pause. They'd never formally discussed it, but she always assumed they had an understanding which was reinforced in her mind by Rick being more open with his feelings over the past few days.

"I don't see myself anywhere else." He remained quiet and she watched him for a moment before asking, "Is that how you see it, too?"

He reached back for her hand, bringing it to his lips for a soft kiss, then down to his chest where he held it. "It's all I could hope for," he said quietly. She squeezed his hand back and looked at him trying to discern what had caused the abrupt shift in mood.

"What's on your mind?" she asked gently.

"I was just thinking about something Morgan said to me the other day. He said _Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future..._ "

" _...concentrate the mind on the present moment_ ," she chimed in along with him. He raised an eyebrow at her, only slightly surprised that she knew it since he'd long ago come to the conclusion she was smarter than him in nearly every way imaginable. "He pulled out some Buddha on you," she said with a grin.

"How do you know it?"

"Yoga, embarrassingly enough," she said. "There was an instructor who used to say that all the time at the beginning of class. Funny thing is, at the time being present meant just turning off your cell phone and forgetting about work deadlines. Takes on a whole new meaning now," she mused. He considered what she said and thoughtfully nodded in response.

"You thinking about the future?" she guessed given the discussion that had led them on this path.

"Yeah. I'm having trouble figuring out how that applies to my life, I guess."

"Probably because it doesn't," she said without hesitation. He had to hold back a smile at her challenging the wisdom of Buddha. "How can you avoid thinking about the future when you have Carl and Judith?"

"And you," he added.

"Rick..." she said as she tilted her head and looked tenderly at him, stroking her thumb against his hand that still held hers against his chest. She found herself wanting to respond to him, but at this point it felt like they had said all there was to say. She slipped off of the couch and knelt on the floor next to him. He kept his eyes on hers as she straddled her leg across his lap and lowered herself onto him so that she was facing him. They were perfectly aligned, head to head, eye to eye, and heart to heart. She brought her hands to his cheeks and leaned forward placing a gentle kiss on his lips. She felt his hands brace her sides as she pulled away, and regained eye contact with him as she slowly opened her eyes. He stared back, lips slightly parted, and shook his head in amazement that they had finally made it to this moment. He could see in her eyes that she knew as well as he did that if they continued, they would be everything. There was no more taking it slowly at this point.

"God, you are everything," he said breathlessly as he pulled her closer and pressed his lips to hers, this kiss deeper and more fervent than the one before.

 **A/N: Is it the calm after the storm or the calm before the storm? Hmm, I always get those confused...**

 **Thanks for reading as always. It was nice to focus on our two favorite people for a bit.**

 **Yari-Thank you for your review. I try to focus on characterization, so your comment means a lot to me. I understand what you mean about the last chapter ending abruptly because it definitely did. I just wanted to end it with Rick's final word on that situation. And you're not alone, I'm pro-Richonne kissing, too.**

 **focusedonprosperity-I'm with you. Boo Jessie. You know it can't go on much longer, though.**

 **lobsterlobster-Funny you mentioned happily ever after in your last review. It's definitely on their minds...**


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: As always, thank you for reading and reviewing. I figured y'all wouldn't mind the Richonne-centric last chapter. And to think this series started off as a friendship piece…I can't even control them in my own story.**

 **Chapter 13, Day 4  
**

She released a small sigh that signaled the beginning of her return to reality. Her heart and breathing had slowed to their normal rate, and her body was warm and lax as she sat in Rick's lap; her chest pressed against his and her arms draped over his shoulders, one across his upper back and the other resting against the back of his head where her fingers lazily combed through his short curls. As she came to, she opened her eyes and looked up toward the second floor of their home. All was quiet now, but with daylight fast approaching, she knew that it wouldn't be long before everyone woke up and started to make their way down. She turned her head so that her forehead rested against his temple.

"We should get up," she whispered in his ear as she started to rise onto her knees. He quietly groaned in protest and pulled her back down to him by placing pressure on her hips where his hands still rested under her shirt against her bare skin. She bit down on her lip to strengthen her resolve.

"Trust me, it's not what I want either," she whispered into his ear again before pulling back to look at him. He gave her a disappointed look as he let his hands slide off of her hips.

She rose to her knees, still hovering above his lap, and reached towards her knees to slide her panties back on, followed by her jeans. Rick readjusted himself, as well, and buttoned his jeans back up, then pulled her back down to him, placing his hands on her cheeks to give her one last kiss before she moved off of him and took a seat on the floor right beside him against the couch. He placed his hand on her thigh, wanting to maintain contact with her in any way that he could.

"I'm sorry."

"For what?" she asked turning to look at him.

"For this," he said waving his hand in front of him. "I know it wasn't exactly ideal."

It was rushed, and over far too soon, but it was still everything they needed it to be. It was a release, a breaking of barriers, and the next step in their relationship.

"I always thought it would happen behind an abandoned woodshed or something, so this? This was pretty damn nice," she said with a reassuring smile which garnered a chuckle in response.

"So you been thinkin' about this, huh?" he said with a cocky tilt of his head.

She pursed her lips and raised an eyebrow at his question. "Yeah," she said completely unashamed. "And you can't tell me that the first time it crossed your mind was fifteen minutes ago." All he could do was guiltily smile in response and shake his head no. "That's what I thought," she answered with a smile as she nudged him with her shoulder.

"So what's the plan for today?" she asked.

"I'll go out and supervise clean up and construction if you wanna take over lookout from Maggie," he suggested.

"Sounds good to me."

"I'll talk to Morgan, too. See whether he's up to taking on lookout duties at our post," Rick added. She nodded in agreement.

"You think maybe you could fast track construction on the platform outside of our house, too?" she asked innocently. A small grin formed on his face as he understood exactly where she was coming from. Having her bedroom double as a command post wasn't in either of their best interests any more.

"Yeah. I think I can arrange that." They held a look between each other that could have easily led to something else, but the sound of footsteps coming down the stairs refocused them. Rick let his hand slide off of her thigh and looked back to see that it was his son and daughter making their way to the living room.

"Why are you guys sitting on the floor?" Carl asked as he made his way around the couch. Rick and Michonne shared a glance and she nodded her head at him to take the lead on this one.

Rick just sighed. " _Somebody_ wouldn't let me sit on the couch."

"Well, yeah. No blood, guts, or mud on the white couch," he said as he looked his father up and down. He sat down on the edge of the coffee table in front of them with Judith in his lap.

"That sounds awfully familiar," Rick said as he side-eyed Michonne.

"House rules," she said with a shrug as she winked back at Carl.

"Yeah, no shoes on the carpet either," he added for his father's benefit. "Oh, and you have to rinse out your bowl right after you eat otherwise the oatmeal turns to paste and impossible to get off."

The frown on Rick's face grew deeper with each rule his son recited. He turned to Michonne, "Anything else?"

"No, that's all for now," she said shaking her head as she giggled at his reaction.

"You guys are a blast, let me tell you..." he grumbled to their delight. He was convinced that ganging up on him was their favorite past time. "I think y'all should take breakfast duty today. I'd hate to break any rules in the kitchen," he deadpanned.

"Fair enough," she said motioning to Carl to join her as she got up.

Rick got up, as well, and took Judith from his son then followed them over to the kitchen. Before taking a seat on the metal stool at the island, he deferred to Michonne. "May I?"

"Yes, the stool is safe," she said from her spot on the opposite side of the island. She found herself stuck there for a moment watching him watching her, both with silly grins on their faces. Part of her wanted to get him fed and out of the house as soon as possible because his presence was proving to be too distracting given what had just happened between them. Luckily movement behind him caught her attention and she looked past him to see Ron and Sam coming down the stairs.

"Good morning, guys," she called out. Rick swiveled around in his chair to see the Anderson boys a few steps ahead of their mother.

"Good morning," Sam answered shyly as Jessie came up next to him and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Morning," she chimed in. Rick nodded his head in greeting and noticed that she was taking in the scene in front of her: Rick, Michonne, and his children gathered in the kitchen happily starting the day together. She refocused her attention on Rick and cleared her throat before speaking, "Is it safe to head back home now?"

"For now," he answered.

She nodded and gathered her boys, "Then we'll be on our way. Thank you for letting us stay here." Her voice was practically devoid of emotion. He wasn't sure if it was anger or embarrassment over her confrontation with Michonne and him earlier that morning, but regardless, it was probably for the best that she was moving on.

"Sure thing," he said as he stood to follow them out and lock up behind them.

xxxxxxx

Rick walked off of his porch and down to the curb in front of his house. A smear of blood stained the previously immaculate concrete and some of the shrubbery along the curb had been uprooted. He kicked in back into place, lightly packing it back into the ground with the tip of his boot then headed down the street to meet up with others to start the day's work.

"Rick!" Jessie called from her porch upon seeing him walk by her house. She had obviously been waiting for him, knowing that he would have to pass by her house sooner or later. He stopped and looked in her direction as she quickly walked up to meet him. "I need to talk to you about something."

"OK," he said as he glanced down the street to where he could see people starting to gather to meet him for work assignments. He'd seen her no less than 20 minutes ago at his home and was unsure what could have transpired during that time that required his attention.

"I want to know if I can change my group assignment. If we have to go into lock down again, I'd prefer to be at your house."

"Jessie, we assigned these groups for a reason. Michonne and I already have two children under our watch. Adding more to that makes it unsafe for everyone," he explained.

"But it's you and Michonne. That's two trained people. How is that any less safe than my boys and me being with Tobin and his son?"

"Michonne and I are also responsible for the community as a whole. It's just not the same."

"Look, Rick, I don't feel safe with Tobin. I've heard the stories about what happened outside the walls, with our community members leaving others behind when there's trouble. I don't trust that he wouldn't do the same to my boys and me if something happened. On top of that, not a single person in this community has ever tried to protect me except for you. Why would I count on them now? You're the only one I trust. Please," she pleaded with him.

"But I'm the one who..."

"That wasn't you who did that," she said referring to Pete death. "That came from Deanna and she was right to do it."

"Jessie, I'm sorry, but I just can't change it. We need to stick to the plan."

"Rick. Please. My boys have been through so much already, and I can't fail them again. I need your help," she said tearing up. Rick pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. He empathized with her as a parent, but he didn't feel as though he had many options to offer her.

"My friend..." he started as he dropped his hand to his side," my friend Morgan, if he agrees to it, may be able to help. I'll talk to him and let you know."

"Do you trust him?" she asked.

"I do. He saved my life before," he assured her. She started nodding her head quickly as she became overwhelmed with relief. She grabbed Rick's hand in both of hers and squeezed it.

"Thank you," she said. "Thank you so much." He nodded and gently pulled back his hand from hers.

"It's not set in stone, but I'll see what I can do."

"I understand," she said with a hopeful smile. He nodded and waved good bye, then headed down the street to meet up with the other community members.

xxxxxxxx

"So we're building a watch tower today?" Morgan asked as he and Rick loaded 2 x 4's into the bed of a pick-up truck to relocate to the other end of the community.

"Nah, just a platform," Rick said with a chuckle.

"That I can manage," Morgan said with relief as he regarded his friend whose mood seemed lighter than it had been in the past few days since his arrival. "You know, I was surprised you even wanted to talk to me this morning."

"Why's that?" Rick asked.

"With the attack last night, I figured you'd hold it against me. Blame me for it in some way."

Rick stopped what he was doing and leaned against the tailgate of the truck. "I can't hold that against you, Morgan. You did what you thought was best at the time with the information you had. I'm just glad none of our people got hurt last night."

Morgan added the 2x4 in his hand to the pile and joined Rick. "I appreciate that."

"Not that it matters much, but did you have a chance to look at the bodies before they disposed of them?"

"I did," Morgan said. "They were both there."

"Like I said, it doesn't change anything. We still have to assume there are more of them out there, but it's promising." Morgan nodded in agreement. "You know, Michonne and I have been keeping watch at our place and we could use an extra man for coverage. Does that sound like something you'd want to do?"

"Of course. I want to pull my weight around here."

"If any more of these men come to our wall, would you be willing to take them out?"

"I would look for other alternatives."

"Morgan, you don't have to do this if you aren't willing to do what needs to be done."

"I want to help, Rick."

"Then I need a yes or a no from you. This is my family. My home," Rick stressed.

"Yes." Rick looked him in the eye, and Morgan looked right back at him.

"Thank you," Rick said once he felt certain of Morgan's answer. "There's something else…one of our neighbors, the wife of the man who was killed the night you came, she needs protection for her and her two boys. She wants to stay with Michonne and me, but we can't take that on."

"I'll do it," he answered before Rick could even ask. Rick nodded in appreciation and went back to loading the wood into the truck again.

After a few more minutes of work, they had enough lumber to start their project, so they hopped into the pick-up truck and drove to the opposite end of the community where they backed the truck into Rick's yard. Morgan exited first and walked around to the back of the truck. He looked up to the roof and waved hello to Michonne who was on watch duty.

"Morning, Morgan," she greeted him.

"Where's your sword?" he joked.

"Inside. Doesn't work quite as well from up here," she replied with a grin.

"You as good with a gun as you are with your sword?" he asked.

"I'm OK. I can get the job done," she said modestly. Her grin grew into a full out smile as she looked just beyond Morgan. He turned to follow her gaze and saw that she was looking down at Rick who had just walked up behind him wearing a smile of his own and shaking his head.

"She's a pretty damn good shot," Rick said to Morgan as he let down the tailgate. Morgan looked between the two, noting that she shared Rick's good mood this morning.

"How's it going up there so far?" Rick called out.

"More activity than usual. I've taken out about a dozen walkers already."

"Any W's?" he asked.

"No. Probably just stragglers drawn in by the noise from last night."

Rick nodded in agreement with her assessment and started unloading the lumber to work on the base of the platform. Over the next few hours, the two men worked side by side making decent progress on their project. They talked while working, including Michonne in their conversation here and there. Carl came out for a bit and tried his hand at construction, but decided he preferred babysitting and reading to manual labor. Throughout the morning, Michonne continued to pick off single walkers who found their way to the walls. She wondered if they were seeing increased activity at the other watch sites, as well. She walked to the edge of the roof towards the front of the house and raised the binoculars to her eyes trying to get a peek at the area in front of the main gate, but she was unable to get a clear line of sight because of the other houses, so she walked back over to her regular position and scanned the area in front of her with the binoculars. The normally patchy forest area at the farthest distance she could see seemed denser to her, more filled in than usual. She wondered if there was an isolated storm or something that could account for the change. She adjusted the focus on the binoculars and looked again, this time able to make out some sort of movement. She stayed focused on the area readjusting the fine focus until she realized what it was she was looking at.

"Rick..." she called out, not removing the binoculars from her eyes.

He stopped what he was doing and looked up at her. "Yeah?"

"Can you come up here?" she asked evenly. He eyed her for a second, her distinct lack of panic causing the opposite reaction in him.

"Be right there," he yelled while removing his gloves and shoving them in his back pocket as he jogged over to the front down and made his way up the stairs. He climbed through the window and stood next to her on the roof.

"What's going on?" he asked in a hushed voice. She just passed him the binoculars. He brought them to his eyes, taking a moment to adjust them before he saw it, as well.

"Is that..." he trailed off.

"Yeah," she answered.

 _Fuck_ he cursed under his breath staring straight ahead.

"There are hundreds of them," she said staring ahead as well.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14, Day 4**

  
"You upset with me?" he asked looking over at her from the driver's seat of the pickup truck.

"No," she said as she continued staring out the window, one leg bent and propped up on the seat, her body angled toward the door.

It was a question he'd asked and an answer he'd received hundreds of times before in his life, only this time he didn't feel like he was walking into a trap. Her voice was soft and almost sad, with no trace of anger. He glanced at her again seeing that she was still looking away from him.

"I know this feels like giving up, but it's not. It's just another approach."

"I know."

They'd led a group out to get a better look at what they were dealing with, and hopefully divert the herd, but their attempts were unsuccessful given the sheer number of them. The advancing front line of walkers spanned at least half a football field making it impossible for the group to wrangle enough of them to change the overall direction. Michonne advocated staying out there to keep trying, but the majority of the group sided with Rick and felt they should take advantage of the lead they still had on the herd and return to the community to continue with reinforcements. He knew that at this point, that they weren't any worse off taking their chances that the herd would change course on its own or just pass on by, but not siding with her never sat well with him. He laid his right hand on the seat next to her, palm facing up and open. When she didn't see it, he extended his hand over further and tapped the outside of her leg with the back of his index finger, finally getting her attention. She looked over at him, his eyes focused on the road, and then down at his hand. Smiling at the gesture, she placed her hand in his.

"Honestly, I'm fine. I'm on board," she reassured him. "Just feeling whatever that feeling is when there's a huge herd of walkers coming for you."

"Bothered?" he suggested flippantly.

"Just a little," she responded dryly. She exhaled and turned her body so that she was facing him. "I mean, the fuck Rick? After everything we've been through, we're back at walkers. It's just-" she was just starting to unload her frustrations when he cut her off.

"Hey," he said softly tossing a glance her way. "We've got about 5 minutes left before we get home. Let's talk about something else until then."

She eyed him wearily for a moment, then hesitantly agreed. "Sure..."

"There's just nothing we can do about it until we get back, so what's the point, right?"

"Right...Morgan must have been laying on the Zen pretty thick this afternoon," she teased.

"No, it's not even that," he said with a roll of his eyes before turning serious. "The minute we get back, it all starts again. We're gonna get pulled in a million different directions for who knows how long dealing with this herd. I just need this. Who else can I do this with?"

He continued looking ahead at the road, left elbow propped in the open window with his hand on the wheel, and the other still holding her hand, squeezing it softly for emphasis when he spoke. She slowly nodded in recognition as she looked him over from her side of the truck. He looked so damn perfect as he sat there in his worn and dirtied button down light green shirt with the sleeves rolled just so, three days' worth of scruff, and tousled mess of curls being blown around by the wind blowing through the rolled down window. She couldn't help but smile at the sight of him, but mostly because as of this morning, they were all in. Completely and unequivocally. They'd been intuitively taking care of each some time now. When one was down, the other rallied without question. It was seamless, and in this instance, she felt like she had missed her cue. She glanced over her left shoulder out the back window, which prompted Rick to look up at the rear view to see what she was looking at. They were in the lead of a caravan of three cars, followed immediately by Aaron, Eric, Glenn, and Maggie in the rusted red sedan behind them. She released his hand so that she could unbuckle her seat belt then slid across the front seat of the truck until she was right next to him, her thigh brushing his. He looked at her, raising a curious eyebrow while his lips formed into a nervous grin. She realized that he wasn't quite sure what her intentions were in that moment.

"Yeah, that's not what's happening right now. Sorry," she clarified in a low voice with a smile. He let out a chuckle in response and she was sure she noticed a small blush on his face which caused her to blush slightly, as well. She placed her left hand at the back of his neck, instead, and began lightly massaging his tired muscles. The sensation caused him to exhale and drop his head momentarily. She continued gently rubbing the area while they rode in silence for a minute, her mind thinking back over what had been a very good day until she spotted the herd in the distance. She began to laugh to herself as one memory crossed her mind.

"What?" he asked looking over at her with a smile.

"Did you see your daughter before we left?"

"Yeah."

"You notice her outfit?"

"Yeah..." he said making a face as he realized what she was referring to. "I know we're behind on laundry, but I didn't think things were that bad."

"That's not even it. After breakfast, I asked Carl to get her dressed and that's what he came up with," she said giggling as she pictured the baby dressed in a red checked top and purple striped pants this morning. It was a noticeable departure from her usually matching pastel outfits.

"Does color-blindness run in the family?" Rick just shook his head no with a laugh. "I'm serious. I have legitimate concerns."

"I think it's just called being a teenage boy with no fashion sense. _That_ he probably got from me."

"Poor Judes, looking like a little Punky Brewster."

"A what?"

"Punky Brewster. A TV show from when we were kids?" His expression was blank. "No?"

"Nope."

"How old are you?"

"Not that much older than you, so watch it...we didn't watch a lot of TV growing up."

"So what did you do for fun?"

"Homework, chores, play outside mostly."

"Chores and homework for fun?" she asked with a frown.

"Well, it's what I did when I wasn't in school. How I spent my free time."

"Your parents pretty strict?"

"Not more so than anyone else's I knew, but yeah, there were rules and there were consequences for breaking those rules."

"And did you face those consequences often?" she asked hoping to dig up some dirt on young Rick Grimes.

"Uh, no. A few times was enough to keep me on the straight and narrow for a long time."

"So responsible. You were the oldest, weren't you?"

"Yeah, I had a younger brother...you know, I feel like I'm on trial here," he said with a grin.

"No," she said emphatically as she gave his upper back a squeeze. "I love this. Getting to know each other is one of the best parts about the beginning," she said with a grin.

"This isn't anywhere near as entertaining for me as it is for you."

"I am enjoying this way too much. I could go on all night."

"Yeah, well, unfortunately that's not gonna happen," he said as the gates to the community came into view in the distance. "Come here," he said as he lifted his right hand to her opposite cheek and turned her face towards his. He averted his eyes from the road to give her a quick kiss on lips. She grinned to herself, then slid back over to her side of the truck since they were coming up on the gates.

"This sucks," she said causing him to laugh at her given her choice of words. Everything about it sucked indeed: the oncoming herd, the possibility of damage to their community, the feeling of being powerless, and the lack of time to explore their new relationship.

xxxxxx

Michonne walked up to the house two down from hers and knocked at the door. Shortly thereafter, she was greeted by the youngest Anderson boy.

"Hey Sam. Is your mom home?"

"Yeah. Hang on," he said as he walked back inside, leaving the door open. "Mom!"

Michonne stood on the porch looking at their living room which housed an easel and numerous paintings on the wall. Jessie came in from the garage through the side door, her hair up in a messy ponytail and a paint stained smock thrown over her jeans and green flannel shirt.

"Hi," Jessie greeted her as she wiped her hands on her smock.

"You paint?" Michonne asked pointing at the easel in her living room.

"I dabble. Art school dropout," she said pointing at herself. "Do you?"

"No, but I love art. I had some very close friends who were artists, so it was a big part of my life."

"Mmm," Jessie just nodded politely, not so interested in exploring their common interest. "So how can I help you?"

"Well, I'm making the rounds to let everyone know that we're going to need people to buddy up again tonight. There's a large group of walkers headed our way and we need people to stay indoors for safety reasons. Also no lights and minimal noise after dusk so we don't incite them. Hopefully they'll pass with no problem, but anything could happen and we just need to be prepared."

"OK," Jessie said with her hand on the door looking anxious to close it and go back to her project.

"Oh, and Rick also asked me to pass along the message that your family was reassigned to Morgan. He'll be over within the hour," Michonne said nodding waiting for Jessie to give her conformation that she understood. Instead, she just stood there with a blank expression. "Any questions?"

Jessie remained tight-lipped and shook her head no, so Michonne turned and started to leave.

"It's not fair," she said timidly to Michonne's back.

"Excuse me?" she asked in confusion as she turned to face Jessie.

"You don't need someone like Rick. You can protect yourself, and it just doesn't seem fair..." she trailed off as she realized that she was coming off wrong based on Michonne's expression. "I'm sorry. It's just that you know what I went through with Pete, and then Rick came along offering to help, and I thought it meant something. I thought he came into my life for a reason and things were finally going to be set right for us. And now Pete's gone and we're being attacked and...and I don't know how someone like me is supposed to make it alone."

Michonne stood silent for a moment, processing what she had just heard. As far as Jessie was concerned, Michonne had it all, and relatively speaking, she did, which is why she didn't allow Jessie's words to provoke her.

"Jessie, you won't make it if you have to depend on someone else for your survival. But you're right; you also can't do it alone, no matter how strong you are. Not even Rick or I can. I'm not sure if that makes sense to you yet, but it will in time. Like he said, we'll teach you how to survive. In the meantime, just know that we're doing everything we can to protect you, your boys, and this community."

Jessie just quietly nodded in response, feeling somewhat put in her place, and watched as Michonne walked away from her house.

Michonne jogged over to the front gates where the crew that she had returned with earlier was busy placing extra barriers around the perimeter to impede the oncoming herd. The increased activity of stray walkers continued, and the snipers positioned at the corners continued taking them out, but the advancing herd was drawing closer and they would have to make their decision soon. Michonne spotted Rick by the gate and made her way over to him.

"Hey, I finished informing the rest of the residents about the curfew tonight. What can I do to help?" she asked. He turned his attention to the others scurrying around him and shook his head.

"Nothing," he said. "They're moving slow, but they're close enough now that we should probably call everyone in." She just nodded and she stared blankly at the others working around her, still slightly distracted by the conversation she'd just had. "You OK?" Rick asked dipping his head down to meet her eyes.

"Yeah."

"So you agree?"

"Yeah, go ahead."

With that, Rick gave a quick whistle to get the group's attention, "That's it everyone. Stop by the armory to stock up, then back with your groups. No noise and lights out. Nobody leaves until you get a signal from us," he said motioning to himself and Michonne.

"No matter what happens out here?" Maggie asked.

"No matter what," Rick reiterated. "If they make it in, just stay hunkered down." The group began to disperse and Rick looked to his side at Michonne. "You ready?" She nodded her head and they both turned back toward their house.

xxxxxxxx

The Grimes family gathered in Michonne's bedroom upstairs so as to avoid movement and noise downstairs that would draw walkers in case of a breach. Carl and Michonne had just started a game of Scrabble on the floor, and Rick leaned up against the wall next to Carl with Judith in his lap figuring his son could use the extra help since he was facing off against Michonne. They were 30 minutes into curfew and sun would be setting soon. The sounds of walkers coming up against the metal walls had continued to grow louder, but they tried to ignore it and stick to the plan no matter how counter-intuitive it felt. Michonne could feel the tension rising in her and looked across the board at Rick while Carl busied himself trying to come up with a word on this turn. Rick met her eyes and acknowledged her with a nod. He knew that part of her wanted to go out there and take action, because he felt the pull, too, but this was unlike any threat they had encountered and they had to respect the threat.

A banging at the front door got their attention.

"Rick! Michonne!" called out a man's voice from below. Rick handed Judith to Carl and got up.

"Stay," he said to them as he left the room. He opened the front door, and quickly ushered Morgan in, then closed it behind him.

"I can't find Jessie and her boys anywhere. They're not answering at her house and they're not at mine," he said.

"She was supposed to be at her place."

"Well, she's nowhere to be found," Morgan answered.

Rick exhaled in frustration. "Wherever they are, so long as they stay inside, they should be OK. You should just stay here. No sense in being on your own."

"They're starting to build up, Rick. I saw a cluster over by the spot where we patched up the break from the attack. I'm not sure how long it can hold."

"We knew this could happen, right? So we stick with the plan. It's all we can do now. Come on," Rick said leading Morgan back upstairs to join Michonne and the children.

 **A/N: I have no idea why, but that chapter was a tough one and hard to get out. Maybe it's because last chapter was so damn fun to write because they DID IT (squee!). Your reactions to that made my day. Thanks so much for reading and commenting. Real life is about to get a little crazy for me, so updates may stretch out a little longer than usual. Sorry.**


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15, Night 4**

The sound of metal crashing to the ground caused her to flinch and turn her head to the nearest window. She wanted to curse or hit something, or maybe even cry in frustration, but she took a deep breath instead and didn't allow any of that to show since she knew Carl's focus was on her. When she looked back at him, his eyes were wide and he was frozen in place.

"Was that one of the walls?" he asked.

She just nodded with remorse. His head dipped down and he let out a long sigh, something that she had seen his father do hundreds of times before when he was feeling the strain of this cruel world. She refused to patronize him by telling him that everything was going to be all right, so she just reached across their now abandoned board game and squeezed his knee. She could only promise him that she would be there with him no matter what happens. She heard Morgan and Rick come to the top of the stairs and walk into her bedroom. She glanced over her shoulder at them meeting Rick's eyes. He glanced down at his son, then back at her before speaking.

"It was the wall by the church, wasn't completely reinforced after last night's attack. Just a small cluster over there that broke off from the main herd," he said as he sat back down on the ground with his back against the wall. Carl stared at his father as he inexplicably relaxed in front of him.

"If it's just a few walkers, why aren't we doing anything about it?" he asked his father. Rick quickly glanced at Michonne, then back at Carl. He understood his son's confusion because they hadn't been completely forthcoming about the magnitude of the herd.

"This is the plan, Carl. We decided it would be best to lay low and let them pass on their own," Rick explained.

"But I don't understand-"

"Carl," he warned. "This is what we're doing." His voice relayed more exasperation than anger. Carl recoiled his head at the response.

"Michonne..." he appealed as he turned to look at her.

"Your dad's right. This is what we decided. I know it feels wrong, but you've gotta trust us," she said with in an even tone trying to settle Carl down. He sighed and nodded his head, then pushed himself back against the bed and crossed his arms against his chest. Michonne understood where he was coming from. He was, for all practical purposes, being raised by her and Rick whom were actively suppressing their own instincts to be more proactive in this situation. Having finally dealt with that issue, she turned her attention to Morgan who had settled in at the opposite end of the room.

"Why aren't you at Jessie's?" she asked. Before he could answer, Rick interjected.

"He couldn't find her."

"What?" she asked in disbelief. The community wasn't that big, and Michonne's instructions to her earlier couldn't have been any clearer. Morgan just shook his head confirming that he hadn't been successful in finding her.

"You know..." Rick started slowly. "Carol mentioned she had a closet the boys could lock themselves away in when Pete was on a tear. Maybe she got scared and went back to what she knew," he offered.

"I hope so," Morgan replied. Even though he'd never met the woman, he couldn't help but feel like he was failing her since he'd been tasked with protecting her family.

"That'd be a smart move on her part," Michonne added hoping that was the case, as well.

The group fell into silence after that. Carl sat opposite Rick, still sulking with his arms crossed. Judith peacefully slept on a blanket laid out on the floor next to him. The beating of walkers against the metal wall closest to their house continued, the collective moans and groans of the accumulating herd was mercifully blocked out by the walls of their house for the most part, though.

 _Bang._

The sound of a single gunshot rang out, causing the adults in the room to grab their weapons and immediately jump to their feet to head down stairs. Carl stood from where he was sitting and followed after them. Rick, Michonne, and Morgan gathered at the front window to get a look at what was going on outside.

"I don't fucking believe this," Rick growled as he stepped back from the window and checked his machete in his holster.

Michonne stepped right into the space he vacated to see what was going on for herself. Jessie held a gun in one hand, and Sam's hand in the other while Ron trailed behind them with a gun of his own. They were trying to make their way past Rick's house towards their own followed closely by a group of about a half dozen walkers. She stepped back from the window, as well, unsheathing her katana from its holder.

"Morgan, you grab Jessie and the boys. Bring 'em straight in here. Michonne and me will flank you, hold off the walkers. Straight out and back, OK?" Morgan and Michonne nodded and followed him to the front door. He placed his hand on the knob, then looked back at them and mouthed a countdown: _one, two, three_. He swung the door open and they ran down the front steps and out into the street towards Jessie who looked up with relief as she heard them coming for her.

"Oh my God. Thank you, thank you." She was completely panicked and shaking in fear from her first encounter with walkers.

Morgan grabbed the gun out of her hand and placed it in his waistband so that he could take her hand. Rick and Michonne stood one on each side of her family, weapons drawn and facing out toward the encroaching walkers.

"What the hell were you doing out here? You were supposed to stay in your house, " Rick barked as the group began to move in unison back to his home. They were only within a stone's throw from the safety of his house, and he couldn't contain his irritation with her.

"We went to the armory to get weapons, and when we came out, they were everywhere..." she dissolved into tears as she trailed behind Morgan holding Sam's hand.

"It's OK. Just stay with me," Morgan said trying to calm her.

Their motion and the noise were starting to draw more walkers toward them. Michonne and Rick each took down a walker as they followed alongside Morgan and the Andersons while Carl stood in the open door of his home watching the scene in front of him. His fingers drummed against the handle of his holstered gun, a habit he'd developed over the past couple of years. In this case, it was an outlet for the tension that was mounting from his desire to be a part of the action. He saw the number of walkers quickly increasing, but trusted his father and Michonne to handle it; and more importantly, he knew he'd face the wrath of his father for getting involved once they reached safety.

"There's more coming. Keep it moving, Ron," Michonne said in a hushed voice when she glanced behind her and saw Ron straggling behind. He jogged up so that he was positioned next to his mother. "There you go," she praised him. She took a quick look ahead to see that they were just a few feet from the curb in front of her house. She allowed her eyes one more second to look up at Carl who had started to yell and run towards them. She looked back behind her to see a walker gaining on Sam on the back of the group.

"Jessie, look out behind you. Grab Sam!" she yelled as she rushed toward the back of the group to take out the walker. Before Jessie could react and Michonne could reach him, the walker lunged forward grabbing Sam by the shoulder. The boy let out a blood curdling scream which completely broke the calm that Jessie was barely holding together. She broke free from Morgan's grip and grabbed Sam by the waist with both hands trying to pull him from the walker's grip, but there was blood spilling from his neck.

"Sam! He's bleeding!" Jessie cried and she continued trying to pull him from the walker's grip with Morgan, in turn, pulling her from behind, as well, trying to extract them from the walker that had Sam and the others that were closing in on them.

Michonne was in place and about to pass her sword through the walker's head when Carl shouted at her.

"Michonne! Behind you. Now!"

She blindly swung her katana behind her slicing through two walkers that had come right up on her. She wanted to turn back toward Sam, but several more were approaching and she had to protect herself and the group.

Carl stepped in front of Ron, one arm extended in front of him to hold him back and his gun aimed at the walker that had a hold of Sam and was about to overtake Jessie, as well.

"I can't get a clear shot! Morgan, pull her back!" Carl shouted.

Rick glanced back at the scene unfolding behind him, unable to break away to help because of the steady flow of walkers now heading toward the group. He saw Sam's fatal bite, however, and yelled out.

"Let him go, Jessie! He's gone!"

"It's my son!" she snapped tearfully not understanding why the group wasn't coming to Sam's aid.

"He's gone, Jessie. He can't come back from that bite," Morgan said as calmly as possible as he tried to pull her away from the same fate as her son. She dug her heals in and refused to move, crying out as Sam's screams started to fade as the blood loss caught up with him and the color started fading from his face.

"No, no, no-" she wailed until her sobs were replaced by a scream. The walker grabbed a hold of her hand where it still gripped Sam's waist and started pulling her toward itself and the advancing walkers.

Ron couldn't stand by any longer and made a break for his mother and brother from behind Carl.

"Ron, no!" Carl yelled as he grabbed his arm and pulled him back. "It's not safe!"

"Let me go," the boy yelled as he struggled with Carl. A louder, more piercing scream stopped them both dead in their tracks as they looked up to find Jessie being pulled into the group of walkers. Carl saw her fate was sealed and used the opportunity to wrap both arms around Ron from behind to keep him from joining them.

Michonne and Rick couldn't break away from their spots on the side to intercede because of the now steady stream of walkers they were fending off.

"Somebody talk to me," yelled Rick. "What's going on?"

Morgan remained quiet, almost in a trance as he continued to pull Jessie back at the waist. She continued crying out as Sam laid below her discarded by the walkers who now had a hold of her bloodied arms and were hungrily clamoring for her upper body.

"Sam and Jessie were bit. It's over," Carl yelled back, the scene only worsening in front of him.

"Let her go, Morgan. We need to get back to safety. There's too many out here," Rick advised, his back still turned from the group as he fought off walker after walker. Morgan didn't answer. He just continued to hold on as she cried out.

"Morgan, let her go!" Rick yelled as he saw the man was frozen.

"I can't, Rick. I can't do that," he said through gritted teeth as tears formed witnessing the mother and son's lives being taken right before his eyes.

"Let her go or you're next!" Rick yelled.

Ron struggled to get out of Carl's grip. "Why is nobody helping them?" he cried as he heard Rick's words.

"We can't," Carl said as he tried to hold him back.

"Yes you can, help her! She's asking for help! You have to save her. It's my mom!" he cried as he continued to fight against Carl successfully breaking one arm loose from his grip.

"Because she's dead! And you will be too if you go over there!" he snapped in frustration, unable to hide the reality from him any longer.

"No, she's not!" Ron exclaimed as he swung his free arm behind him striking Carl in the temple with the butt of the gun he still held in that hand. Carl's arms and legs went limp as fell to the ground from the force of the blow, his head smacking against the concrete. The noise was loud enough that it cut through everything else to catch Michonne's attention. She looked back to see Carl lying unconscious in the street, a pool of blood forming around his head.

"Carl!" she screamed in a panic. She backpedaled toward him as she fought. Rick looked back to see his son on the ground.

"Carl!" he shouted helplessly. "Morgan, my son!"

Morgan looked back to see Carl on the ground, then back at Jessie who was practically lifeless still in his grips; Ron rushing to her side and his inevitable fate.

Sensing his hesitation, Michonne called out, "Morgan, please!"

He dropped his hold on Jessie and walked over to Carl, gathering him into his arms. Rick and Michonne fought their way to his side.

"Rosita's manning the infirmary across the way," she said pointing the tip of her katana in the direction they'd be heading. "Rick and I will cover you. Go!" she shouted as she took off in front of Morgan, Rick by her side.

She allowed herself a quick look at Rick to check on him. His jaw was clenched, head forward, and eyes focused on the path ahead as he slashed through walker after walker. They had a single focus at this moment, and nothing would stop them until they got Carl to safety. They made their way to the steps of the infirmary and split to allow Morgan to go through between them. Carl's limp body hung in Morgan's arms, the blood from his head had saturated Morgan's left shirt sleeve.

"Carl," Rick whimpered as they brushed by him, seeing his son's state for the first time. He reached out his hand to his son's head letting it linger until it fell to his side as they ascended up the steps.

He turned back to the group of walkers that had followed them, letting out a guttural yell, as he laid into them with his machete, Michonne fighting right alongside him to keep them from the infirmary.

After a few minutes, Morgan came down the stairs. He walked up behind Rick, tapping him on the shoulder and holding out his hand.

"Go be with your boy. I can take over."

Rick ignored him and continued fighting the walkers, his intensity rising with the suggestion that he stop the fight. Michonne quickly looked over to him.

"Rick, go," she said firmly.

"I can't..." he paused as he swung his blade. "I can't leave you out here."

"We can handle this. You need to be with Carl. Go," she said again leaving no room for argument. He backed up to where Morgan stood behind him, then handed over his machete and jogged up the steps of the porch. He took a moment to look over the community since he finally had cover. He could see the breach in the wall where walkers were still piling in dozens at a time. He looked down at Michonne as she tirelessly battled and couldn't help but feel like he was leaving her in a hopeless situation.

"They're not stopping. More and more are making their way through," he warned them.

"Rick, I won't say it again. Go!" she yelled back.

He let his eyes linger on her for one ore moment before he turned and entered the infirmary.

 **A/N: And action. Whew. The words and feels come back next chapter. Sorry to end it there, but otherwise it would have gone on forever.**

 **So no chop, I know, but same results. I figured why give you what you were expecting. In this story, we also already know where Rick stands on the issue, so there's no shock value to be had.**

 **Thanks for your response to the last chapter-it was the biggest I've ever gotten which surprised me and meant a lot, so thank you.**

 **And Makenna, Carol is around, but not living in their house in my world. Mostly because I'm lazy and didn't want to work around that one. )**


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16, Night 4**

"Wash your hands and put those on," Rosita said nodding toward a package of sterile gloves on the counter by the sink while she applied pressure to Carl's head wounds. "I'll need an extra set of hands in a minute. Are you up to that?"

"Of course," Rick said quietly as he did as told. He was in shock because of everything that had just happened and only felt half there. He shook the excess water off of his hands and put the gloves on, then joined her at the surgical table in the back half of the infirmary. He looked down at his son, pale and unconscious on the table, only made worse by the bright light shining down on him from the lamp that hung above him. He clenched his eyes shut and swallowed hard to push away the bile that rose in his chest. He could handle almost anything, but this was as personal as it got for him, and he was trying to scrape together very last ounce of strength he had to get through this.

She rinsed out the large wound on the back of his head and gathered the supplies she would need, then set up a sterile field as best she could remember how.

"I'm gonna staple the wound shut, so I just need you to push the edges together for me as I go," she instructed.

He nodded and hesitantly placed his hands at the margin of the wound, approximating the edges for her. "Like this?" he asked.

"Just a little closer," she replied prompting him to adjust his placement. "They need to meet just like that," she said once he got it to her liking. "Perfect."

She put the skin stapler in place at one end of the wound and began her work. The first loud clacking sound of the instrument caught Rick off guard and caused him to turn his head and wince. His movement caught her eye as she continued to methodically close up Carl's wound.

"I numbed him up before you got in, so don't worry. He's not feeling any pain," she said to reassure him.

"Thank you," he eked out as he turned to focus on Carl again.

"It's not as bad as it seems, Rick," she went on realizing that she hadn't really given him an update on his condition. "His blood pressure is stable, he's breathing on his own, his pupils are equal and reacting to light. These are all good signs."

"What about the bleeding? It looks like he's lost a lot of blood."

"Injuries to the face and scalp bleed a lot because it's a highly vas..." she stopped herself short realizing she was throwing around the medical jargon she'd heard Pete use which wouldn't make much sense to a lay person. "There are a lot of small blood vessels in the area, so any break in the skin tends to bleed a lot. We got to him right away, though, so he should be OK."

"If he needs a transfusion, I can give him blood. I've done it before."

Rosita placed the last staple and stopped for a moment to look Rick in the eye before answering. "I wouldn't have a clue how to do that," she said almost apologizing for her limitations. Rick nodded slowly in understanding, coming to realize the trouble Carl could be in if things took a turn for the worse.

"Help me turn him over so I can stitch up his forehead," she said as she pulled the drape from his head and cleared the instruments from the area.

"How...how do you know..." he trailed off not wanting to offend her when she was doing her best to help his son.

"What I'm doing?" she asked in her typical deadpan, but with a small smirk. "This is basically the same thing that happened to Tara. I was by her side 24-7, helping Pete care for her, so I'm just going off what I picked up from that. It's kind of fucked up, I know," she said self-consciously.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean anything by it. I knew what you'd been though, it just slipped my mind. I just...feel like I wasn't all here when that was going on," he said shaking his head thinking back to how events just a few days ago seemed so blurry and distant at this point, almost as if they'd happened to another person.

Rosita was struck by how similar his words were to those that Michonne had said to her out in the woods just a few days ago: _I just feel like I was asleep in there_. In her estimation, if Michonne seemed screwed up because they found something, Rick had been completely fucked up. She'd been front and center for his fight with Pete and there later that night for the aftermath when she patched him up. She'd never been particularly close to either Rick or Michonne on the road, but she could see what each of them had been going through, and it hit close to home since she and Abe had just come out of a similar dark spot.

"Yeah, well, it's impossible for it all not to catch up with you at some point. Nobody's spared," she said as she began to suture the cut on Carl's forehead.

"You need me to do anything?" Rick offered.

"Not this time," she answered, absorbed in the task at hand. He watched as she, as far as he could tell, skillfully placed the sutures.

"You've done this before," he remarked.

"Yeah, Pete didn't always have the, uh, steadiest hands. Especially if it'd been a while since his last drink. He coached me through this a few times."

"What was he like?" he asked imagining that her experience had differed from his.

"Pete was...fine. He never gave me any problems when he was around. Turns out he taught me a lot. Saved my best friend, so..." she trailed off as she focused on tying off a suture. She glanced up at him to continue talking before she moved on to the next suture, but caught sight of something behind him.

"Rick," she said pointing her chin toward the other room. He turned to see Michonne placing her katana on the counter in the front room before making her way back to where they stood.

Her gaze was fixed on the scene in front of her: a motionless Carl on the table, head covered by a surgical drape, bloodied towels and gauze scattered on the floor below. Her eyes began to sting with tears and she felt her chest tighten with dread. She covered her mouth with one hand as she walked unsteadily to the back of the room, drenched in sweat and blood.

"Michonne," he whispered as she neared him, his voice cracking with emotion at the sight of her. He reached out for her shoulder, and she placed a hand on his chest to steady herself.

"Carl..."

"It's probably just a concussion. Rosita's almost done stitching up the wounds." She nodded still looking at the boy. He placed his hand under her chin and turned her head towards him. She looked up at him with glassy eyes, taking deep breaths in as she tried to stave off the flood of tears that were threatening to spill out.

"Our group. They saw what happened and came out to help. Carol has Judith. I tried, but they wouldn't let me stay out there." Rick nodded, grateful that they had come to their aid. He was willing to hand over the reins to them, trusting that they could handle it.

"Are you OK?" he asked slowly and deliberately as he braced her shoulders with both hands and ran his eyes over her looking for any signs of injury. She nodded her head and walked into his arms, burying her face in his chest. He wrapped his arms around her tightly, feeling her shoulders heave under them as she began to cry quietly. He rested his chin on her head and turned his head away from the surgical table where Rosita continued to work quietly to hide the tears that had started falling down his face. Now that Michonne was with him, he was finally able to let go.

xxxxxx

Rick sat in a chair by his son's bedside in the front room of the infirmary watching Michonne who was perched on the side of the bed. She'd been in that spot for what seemed like forever, quietly looking down at the still unconscious Carl, gently sweeping his long hair across his forehead away from his newly acquired injury with her fingertips.

"It's all my fault," Rick said quietly finally breaking the silence. She looked at Carl a moment longer before turning to face Rick. She furrowed her brow and studied his face for a moment before speaking.

"And why do you think that?"

"She asked to stay with us, and I said no. If I'd said yes, we wouldn't be sitting here right now."

"You don't know that."

"Yeah. I do."

Michonne got up from the bed and took a seat in the chair right next to him.

"No. You don't," she said shaking her head. "It may actually be my fault."

He just tilted his head and looked at her unable to believe she could share any of the blame.

"When I went to give her her new assignment, we started talking," she said being intentionally vague so as not to give Rick another reason to blame himself for this situation since he was the reason for her comment, "I told her that you can't depend on anyone else for your survival, but that you also can't make it alone...and I can't help but to think that had something to do with her going to the armory."

Rick looked over at Carl while he mulled over what she said. He didn't need to be told what they had been talking about because every interaction he'd had with Jessie since Pete's death had been the same: she wanted him and his protection. He could only imagine that she voiced that to Michonne given her response.

"Well, if I hadn't lost my mind and overstepped my boundaries," he said looking back at her, "we wouldn't be here. That's the point."

"And if Carl had stayed in the house, he wouldn't be hurt, but then maybe I'd be dead since he alerted me to that walker. If Jessie had stayed inside, maybe they'd still be alive. If we hadn't come here at all, none of this would have happened, but then what would have become of us out there? We can't do this. We can't question every single move, Rick."

He nodded because he got what she was saying on a logical level, but he couldn't let it go that easily.

"An entire family, Michonne, just gone in the span of four days and I was right there every step of the way. Two kids Carl's age, gone. What's his future going to be like if it's just him and Judith? What are we even doing this for?"

"Rick," she said softly, but firmly. "Look at me." She waited to speak until his eyes were locked on hers. "No matter how hard we tried, we weren't going to be able to change this place into what it needs to be in a matter of days."

"It's just that, every time I think I'm done dealing with the fallout from the past few days, there's more. It just won't stop."

She reached over and covered his hand with hers where it rested on the arm of his chair, intertwining their fingers.

"I've gotta believe this is it. We'll make it back from this. We only just started something and this isn't a sign to give up. We keep moving forward."

 _We_. Of all the things she could say, it was the one thing that comforted him, and it had been for a while. He exhaled and gave her the slightest grin while he lifted his thumb and began softly rubbing it against the outside of her pinkie finger where it rested.

xxxxxx

The bright early morning sun had just started coming through the window causing Rick to squint his eyes. The sounds of the fight outside had ceased sometime in the middle of the night, though Rick wasn't quite sure when. He couldn't help but want to get up to survey the scene outside, but he didn't want to wake Michonne who had nodded off an hour ago with her head resting against his shoulder. He trusted that his group had done what they needed to do, involving him if they though it necessary. Instead he continued to sit still, Michonne's hand still in his as she slept, watching over Carl. His face was bruised and swollen, and his injuries would no doubt leave a scar, but the extent of those scars remained to be seen.

The creaking sound of the front door caught Rick's attention. He turned back to see Abraham quietly and slowly opening the door to avoid noise and softly padding into the room followed by Glenn, Maggie, and Carol who held a bright-eyed Judith. A huge smile spread across Rick's face at the site of his baby girl.

"Chonne," he whispered into her ear while he squeezed her hand to rouse her. Her eyes began to flicker open. "Look who's here," he whispered. She raised her head from his shoulder and looked up to see her friends cautiously approaching the side of the bed. She met eyes with Maggie first who squeezed her shoulder and gave her a comforting grin.

Carol could barely keep Judith from wriggling out of her arms once the baby saw her father. He reached up to grab her and cradled her against his chest, placing a kiss on the top of her head as he often did, only this time holding it just a little longer given how relieved he was to see her. He looked up at Michonne, who had turned her attention to the two of them, and smiled at her. She placed her hand on Judith's back and sighed with relief.

"What happened out there?" Rick said directing his attention to Abe.

"We killed a fuck ton of walkers. Got things back under control, but that's not why we're here," he answered.

"Yeah. How's Carl doing?" Glenn asked.

"He still hasn't woken up yet, but we're hopeful he's gonna be OK."

Rick saw Rosita emerge from the back room, likely awakened by the sound of the group. She made her way straight to Abe and wrapped her arms around his waist. His large arms practically engulfed her tiny frame and he kissed the top of her head. He whispered something to her to which she nodded in response and tightened her grip on him. Rick looked away from them and back at Glenn and Maggie who stood in front of him at Carl's bed side.

"Rosita's been taking great care of him," he said acknowledging how she had stepped up for his son.

"She has. We couldn't be more grateful to her or to you guys for everything you've done," Michonne added on.

"We're family. You don't even have to ask," Maggie replied. "Can we get you anything or stay with Carl for a while so you can go rest?"

Michonne and Rick looked at each other for a moment. "No. No, we're OK, but thank you," Rick said with an appreciative nod.

"Well if you change your minds..."

"We'll let you know," Michonne said to Maggie with a smile.

"You want me to take her back?" Carol offered holding her hands out toward Judith.

"I'm gonna hang onto her for a little while longer," he said with a grin.

"OK, well we'll let you be. Just wanted to check in," Glenn said as he took Maggie's hand and headed toward the door.

As the group gathered and prepared to leave, Rosita walked to Carl's bed side to give him a quick once over then turned back Rick and Michonne.

"I'd like to head home to grab some food and a change of clothes. Will you be OK without me for a bit?" she asked.

"Of course. Take your time," Rick replied. She smiled and nodded then joined the group waiting by the door and left.

There was silence once again except for Judith's soft babbling. Michonne pushed herself up from the chair and took a seat on the edge of the bed again, running her hand across Carl's forehead just as she had done during the night. She looked at his face with a mixture of pain and worry, wishing that she could somehow will him to wake up just by thinking it. Rick got up from his seat and walked over to stand behind her. He held Judith on his left hip and looked at Carl over Michonne's shoulder feeling relieved he was that the four of them were together, but wishing that it was under different circumstances. She looked back over her should at him with a sad smile that told him she was feeling exactly the same. He wrapped his right arm around the front of her chest and leaned down to give her a soft kiss on the lips. She returned her gaze to Carl and leaned her back into Rick's chest as they continued to keep watch over their boy.

 **A/N: I really want to thank you all for your response to the last chapter. You guys are too kind. And I'm so happy you're enjoying the story even if the last chapter caused some major stress and anxiety. Deep breaths.**


	17. Chapter 17

**Epilogue, Day 9**

"You're out early," Morgan called out to Rick from his front porch where he sat with his morning coffee.

Rick stuck his hands in the pockets of his brown shearling jacket to ward off the early morning autumn chill, and made his way up the walkway to Morgan's house.

"Yeah, sleep's been hard to come by lately, so I took to walking the streets instead of pacing around my living room."

"How is Carl doing?"

"He's fine physically, thank God. Just dealing with the after effects of the head injury now. He's not quite himself yet," Rick said as he leaned on the railing of the front porch in front of where Morgan was seated.

"Well, I'm hoping he gets to put this all behind him soon. He's a good boy. A strong boy."

"He is," Rick said looking toward the ground and scuffing his boot at nothing in particular before looking back up to Morgan. "I never got a chance to thank you for helping us that day."

"Feel like I did more harm than good out there."

"No. You tried your best to help Jessie and her boys. You got Carl to safety, helped Michonne fight off the walkers until the others came. You did more than your part that day. Thank you."

"I felt like it was my fault, Rick."

"You throwing your name in the ring, too? Michonne and me already tried to take the blame. Not much more to go around," Rick said dryly.

"I offered to help her family because I thought I could. After everything that went wrong with Jenny and Duane, I thought this was the universe's way of making some sense of it. Righting a wrong. But I just froze, and watched it all happen again."

"Morgan, there were so many choices that were made along the way, so many things that happened that could have changed that outcome, and I promise you that you're the last person who had anything to do with it. I'm sorry I put you in that situation."

"I put myself there, Rick, but I appreciate it," Morgan took a sip of his coffee and leaned back in his chair. Rick could see that he'd been troubled by this whole ordeal, taking it personally, and not letting go of the past as he'd advocated to Rick on that same porch just a few days before.

"You've done a lot for me and my family, Morgan. I'm not sure you realize that."

Morgan looked at him with interest which prompted Rick to continue.

"What you said to me that day about letting go of the past... it's something I needed to hear. It helped me make some changes that I needed to move forward. Be better leader. Be more present for my family. Let Michonne in..."

The last item on Rick's list garnered a grin from Morgan. "Yeah?"

"Yeah," Rick said bashfully realizing what he'd just admitted to. "We're keeping it quiet now, but yeah..."

"Rick, the two of you have so many strengths it's almost not fair, but keeping secrets is not one of them," he said with a chuckle causing Rick to tilt his head. "You're already together in everyone's eyes. Why do you think they came out to fight, and sent Michonne to Carl's bedside? We wanted her to be with her family."

Rick bit his bottom lip and shrugged his shoulders, unsure of what to say to that.

"I'm happy for you, Rick. It's a beautiful thing for you and your family," Morgan said with a smile. Rick nodded in appreciation.

"I didn't mean to make it all about me. I just wanted you to know that your influence is being felt in ways that maybe you weren't aware of. And I don't think you're through yet. I'm glad you made it here, Morgan."

"Thank you, Rick." The two men sat in silence for a moment, Rick turning his head back to look out at the community as the sun was rising above it.

"You have plans for today?" Rick asked turning back to him.

"Nothing specific. I was going to offer my services to the construction crew today. Help out with the wall fortifications."

"How would you feel about finishing that platform we started?"

"I think that sounds like as good a job as any," Morgan confirmed.

"Good," Rick nodded as he pushed himself off from the railing. "Come on over in about an hour. We should be able to knock it out by lunch." With that he turned and walked off the porch back to his house.

 **xxxxxxxxx**

 **Night 9**

"What are you reading? Looks heavy."

Michonne looked up from the large yellow hardback book resting in her lap to see Rick standing in her bedroom doorway. She felt her face relax as she grinned at the sight of him, unaware that her brows had been so deeply furrowed in concentration as she read. She tilted the book against her chest so he could see the title: _Clinical Neurology_.

"You have some new career plans you wanna tell me about?" he teased.

"If I'd have known what the future held, I would have picked med school over law school without a doubt. But it's too late for that now…" she paused and sighed. "Rosita let me borrow it from the clinic. I just wanted to do a little research..."

Rick nodded his head from his spot in the doorway, his light mood dissipating. "And what did you find out?"

She nodded her head past him towards the children's room down the fall. He followed her gaze and realized what she was getting at. "Oh, they're both asleep."

He stepped in shutting the door behind him. "It's that bad?" he asked.

"No, not necessarily. We'll just have to wait and see. It says even mild concussions can cause mood changes, difficulty concentrating, sleep problems, memory loss, and headaches anywhere from a few days to several months afterwards. More severe head injuries can cause more significant problems."

"And there's nothing we can do..."

"Just let him rest and support him through it," she said shutting the book and watching him as he paced over to the window on the far side of her room and looked out.

"I don't know if it's just wishful thinking, but I feel like he's better than he was just a few days ago. A little sharper."

"I see it too," she assured him with a small smile that he'd never see since his back was to her, his arms raised and bracing the inset of the window. His stance drew attention to the lines of his lean, muscular back that were obvious even under the white t-shirt he wore.

"You admiring your handy work?"

"Don't make fun," he warned her. "It's a damn fine platform."

"It is," she said as a smile involuntary tugged at her lips.

"I made it just for you," he said turning his head slightly over his shoulder.

"Yeah, me and an entire community."

"No, I personally built this one by hand because _someone_ put in a special request."

"No, I know, and I appreciate it. I do," she said dropping some of sarcasm for a moment to recognize what he'd done. "I'm quite happy to have my bedroom back."

He stepped back from the window and pulled the curtains shut then turned to look at her appearing comfortable and happy, indeed, with her back resting on two pillows propped against the headboard and the white comforter pulled up over her waist.

"Good," he said with a satisfied grin.

She watched as he quietly walked over to the window to the left of her bed and pulled down the shades, then walked around the foot of the bed making his way to the other side where he pulled down the shades on that window, as well. As she watched him work his way around her bedroom, she couldn't help but feel slightly giddy at the prospect of what the night held. It was their first night at home together since Carl's injury and the first night they'd be sharing a bed. It seemed more like a foregone conclusion than a momentous occasion considering who they already were to each other, but it was still a moment worth treasuring in the midst of all of the darkness over the past few days.

He stood at the side of the bed, facing her, and brought his hands to his waist to undo the button of his jeans, but stopped before unzipping them because of the look on her face. "What?" he asked tilting his head slightly.

"Nothing," she said shaking her head as she continued to watch him, unable to keep the grin off her face.

"I took a shower if that's what you're worried about," he said as he unzipped his jeans and slipped them down to his knees revealing a pair of light blue boxers. She rolled her eyes in response to his jab at her house rules.

"No, it's not that. I wouldn't even care if you hadn't." He stopped, balancing on one foot as he drew the other out of his pant leg, to look up at her and raise his eyebrow at her change of tune. " _Just_ for tonight," she quickly clarified which earned her a smirk from him.

"And why's that?" he teased as he turned down his side of the bed and slipped in under the comforter, laying his head on the pillow.

"Because I just want you here," she said sincerely as she placed the text book on her nightstand then slid her body down under the covers and turned onto her side to face him. He rolled onto his side, as well, and shifted toward her so that their faces were only inches apart then placed his hand under her tank top in the dip her waist, running his thumb along the smooth skin of the curve leading up to her rib cage. She raised her hand to the side of his cheek and rested it there, taking in his face that was finally healed up from his fight with Pete.

"Hey," he said softly.

"Hey," she responded as she exhaled feeling settled for the first time in a while.

"I feel like I'm a hundred years old," he said with a groan and a wry grin.

She frowned as she looked at his handsome face, rugged and weary for sure, but no less pleasing to her eye.

"Well, you don't look it," she said warmly as she grazed her thumb across his cheek.

"The past ten days have been hell, Michonne."

"To say the least. Feels like we're finally coming out of it, though."

"Thank you for everything you've..." he started to say before she brushed her thumb across his lips to hush him.

"You don't need to say that. It's what we do for each other, and it's what we'll keep doing." He nodded in agreement, feeling humbled by her commitment to him.

"Can I tell you how beautiful and amazing you are, then? How lucky I feel to have you by my side?" He watched her as tears started forming in her eyes and she begrudgingly nodded her head yes. "Yeah?" he said with a chuckle. "I'm allowed to say that?"

"Yeah," she said as she dropped her hand to his chest and nudged him slightly. "But you can't make me cry."

"I'm sorry. I just needed you to know." She nodded and pulled her hand away from his chest to wipe the corners of her eyes, then placed it on his waist pulling herself closer to him.

"After Mike and Andre...I felt nothing. I couldn't imagine a life or a future; just darkness that I never thought I'd make it out of. But here I am with you and your incredible children, and I can't help but think we found each other for this very reason."

He nodded in silence, and pulled her to him completely closing the gap between them, resting his forehead against hers.

"I love you," he whispered in response.

"I love you, too."

 **xxxxxxxxxx**

 **Day 10**

Michonne slept soundly through the night, her head resting on Rick's chest in the nook created by his arm that was wrapped snugly around her. Her naked body ran along the left side of Rick's, her left leg draped over his and resting in between them. The sun had been up for at least an hour she figured, but she had nowhere to be, and no one or nothing else requiring her attention, so she allowed herself the indulgence of drifting in and out of sleep in his arms.

"Michonne, you awake?" Carl whispered loudly as he tapped lightly on the door. She propped herself up on an elbow and looked across the bed the alarm clock that read 7:24 AM. She hurriedly gathered the sheets up over her chest fearing being exposed if he opened the door. He knocked again.

"Yeah, just waking up. Give me a minute. You OK?" she called out looking down at Rick whose eyes were now open and watching her with an amused look on his face.

"It's locked," he whispered. "Don't worry."

"Yeah, I'm fine. It's Saturday, right?" Carl answered. Michonne looked down at Rick and mouthed _Is it?_ He shrugged his shoulders not having a clue what day of the week it was either.

"Yeah...but regardless you don't need to worry about school or chores. You're still supposed to be resting," she answered assuming that's why he asked.

"Yeah, I know. It's just that we said we were gonna make waffles again on Saturday and I woke up starving, so I wanted to see if you were ready for breakfast yet."

She looked down at Rick confused for a minute by his seemingly random statement until she remembered that they had, in fact, made waffles the previous weekend and set up a date to do it again. She brought her hand to her mouth, smiling behind it, as she looked down at Rick who had just made the connection, as well.

"You're totally right. And you know I'm always down to eat. Just give me a few minutes."

"No rush. I'll wait for you guys downstairs."

She clenched her eyes shut at his use of _you guys_ and practically held her breath until she heard him land at the bottom of the stairs.

"Shit," she muttered looking at Rick who was completely unfazed, if not slightly entertained.

"What are you gonna do?"

"No, what are _you_ gonna do? This is a father-son talk," she retorted.

"I know."

"You're very chill about this, Rick," she said eyeing him as she hovered above him still propped on one elbow.

"And you're not," he said with a smile pulling her back down into his embrace. "You really think he's going to have a problem with it? That kid loves you. He came looking for you this morning, not me."

She smiled against his chest where her head was resting knowing that she had no reason to doubt her relationship with Carl.

"No, I think he'll be fine with it. I just worry it's a lot for him to handle right now."

He placed a kiss on the top her head and stroked it lightly with the hand that rested there trying to help ease her mind.

"If he asks about it, we'll tell him the truth. If he doesn't, we'll give him a little more time to heal before we have the talk. Agree?"

"Agree."

"Judging by this morning, it probably won't be too much longer."

"Seriously. He's a little too with it for us this morning..." she said with a chuckle. "But his appetite's back. He slept through the night for the first time since we came home. His memory's better than either of ours."

"That's for damn sure," he said with a laugh. "He's made a lot of progress already."

She smiled and looked up at him, nodding her head, afraid to say anything that would tempt fate. She couldn't help but feel hopeful about his recovery, though. She patted Rick's chest with her hand that rested there and then raised herself up again.

"Time to make the waffles," she said hating to bring an end to the best the night she'd had in a long time. Everything about it was perfect, and for just a short time, it lived up to the promise of the normal life Alexandria was supposed to afford them. She walked over to her dresser to slip on some clothes then turned back to the still naked man lying in her bed. She couldn't help but smile at the sight; committing it to memory so that she could look back on it no matter what was to come. She walked over to his side of the bed where he held out his hand for her to grab. She squeezed it in hers and bent down to place a kiss on his lips, locking eyes with him and smiling as she stood back up.

"I'll give you a five minute head start before I make my way down with Judy," he said.

"OK, slick," she said with a laugh. She smiled and shook her head then turned for the door taking one last look back before leaving.

 **A/N: The End. I've been planning to end it here for a while, but didn't want to tip you off last update and ruin the experience for the last chapter. What started as a 3 part story ended up being 17 parts, and the most rewarding writing experience I've had yet. Thank you so much for following along, reviewing, and lending your support along the way. I have had a blast interacting with you guys-nothing gets by you! You crack me up with your hilarious comments and amaze me with your insight, often pointing out things that had never even occurred to me.**

 **I'm going to take a break from writing for a bit to enjoy the summer, but keep your eye out for a kind of-sort of sequel to Into Dawn. It will be a series of one-shots focusing on Rick and Michonne's new relationship. Just some cutesy fluff because my brain can't handle anything more than that for a while.**


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